2 minute read
The path to a sustainable future
During the last decade, we’ve improved hundreds of miles of towpaths, to revitalise our canals and encourage walkers, runners and cyclists to travel actively, sustainably, and considerately along them. Come with us as we discover how our towpaths can help reduce our carbon footprint and take us towards a greener future.
“A chap emailed me recently, who had just cycled with his eight year old, all the way from Leeds to Liverpool,” explains Dick Vincent, our marketing operations and delivery advisor. “He told me that it’s the only place in England that he felt safe to cycle that far with his son … and that’s probably true. Canals are great for adventures.” As Dick points out, towpaths provide a wonderful 2,000 mile long network of walking, cycling and running routes right on our doorsteps. And that’s why he suggests that our National Towpath Network is similar to, but quite different from, the National Cycling Network run by our partners Sustrans. “We have to remember that towpaths aren’t like roads, pavements, cycle lanes or running tracks. They are quiet, slow, special places for everyone to enjoy and share. They offer so much more than just A to B and most people are on foot. That’s why we’re piloting new devices like SID, our Speed Information Displays, which warn cyclists about their speed and give them a smile when they slow down.”
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Dick says towpaths are undoubtedly helping to get people out of their cars and onto their feet. He tells us: “I’d say London is probably ahead of the curve in welcoming walkers and cyclists onto the towpath. But Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds and every major city on our network is seeing more people use the canals for healthy, active travel.
What better lead to follow than Dr Gemma Bridge, Leeds’ first ‘Running Mayor’? As a keen runner and world championship standard race-walker, she uses the Leeds & Liverpool Canal regularly to train and travel sustainably across the city. “The premise of being a ‘Running Mayor’ is to encourage more people to run as they commute, go to school or complete everyday journeys and errands,” explains Gemma. “I work with businesses to encourage them to provide shower and locker facilities that make running to work practical.” Gemma is also an academic specialising in Public Health, so she’s very clear on the benefits of towpath use for our health during the pandemic, and for the planet in the face of climate change: “Everyone now understands that running is good for your physical and mental health and gets you out of cars and off crowded public transport.” Tackling climate change might seem hard to do all on our own, but Gemma says making small changes can make a big difference to our local areas and our health. “So I encourage people to enjoy being outside and spending time by water. And if that prevents a car journey, then so much the better. There’s so many wonderful canals you can run along. We just need to use them more.” Little by little there are small changes we can all make, to help create a more sustainable world.
