COMMISSIONER TO STAND DOWN AFTER ACTIVE TRAVEL REVOLUTION IN SOUTH YORKSHIRE LEAVES ACTIVE TRAVEL LEGACY FOR SOUTH YORKSHIRE

Published 7 March 2022 at 9:00am

Active Travel Commissioner for South Yorkshire, Dame Sarah Storey has announced she is stepping down from the role, after leading and delivering a transformation in the region’s walking and cycle network.

Dame Sarah was appointed as the region’s first Active Travel Commissioner in April 2019 and has worked closely with the Mayor to secure government funding for active travel projects and to make them accessible to all, leaving a legacy which will inspire people of all ages and abilities to walk and cycle.



Together, Dame Sarah and the Mayor have succeeded in creating the Active Travel Implementation Plan for South Yorkshire, which details how over 1000km of routes, 800m of safe crossings and 230 sq. km. of low traffic neighbourhoods will help to transform the region by 2040.

They have also secured transformational amounts of investment for the active travel network in the region, including the commitment of over half the £166m Transforming Cities Fund for active travel schemes, and £5.4m of the government’s Active Travel Fund to improve walking and cycling routes.

Dame Sarah Storey said:

“Three years ago, I was appointed by Mayor Dan Jarvis as his Active Travel Commissioner, the first for South Yorkshire, to develop and lead a strategy that would enable the region to deliver the benefits of active travel.

I have been delighted to work alongside Dan and the four local authorities and to watch immense progress being made – from the rapid establishment of the 2040 active travel network map and adoption of new and upgraded infrastructure standards in June 2020, to the expansion of the Wheels for All centres which will enable people with disabilities and long term health conditions to start cycling in a safe and supported way.

There’s been a whole army of schools championing the myriad of active travel benefits, and a new approach adopted by South Yorkshire Police who now have both a 3rd party reporting portal and dedicated teams of officers trained on bikes to work to make the roads feel less hostile.

“The region is also now firmly on the map as having ambition and skill for producing high quality infrastructure, more of which will be delivered over the next 12 months.

“It has been a great privilege to work for Mayor Dan Jarvis, his leadership and vision provided the inspiration for the plan and with his departure it is now time to hand over the reins to the next mayoral team to build and develop for the future. I can’t thank Dan enough for entrusting the role to me and I’d like to thank everyone who has been part of making the last three years a success. It has been fantastic to lay strong foundations for the active travel network and I am looking forward to seeing the next phase being delivered soon."

Mayor Dan Jarvis has sent an open letter to the Commissioner, thanking her for her three-year tenure in South Yorkshire and detailing her significant achievements in Active Travel.

Mayor of South Yorkshire, Dan Jarvis said:

“It has been an amazing three years for Active Travel in South Yorkshire during which time we’ve seen a paradigm shift in our approach as a result of the incredible commitment from Dame Sarah. I want to thank her for her extraordinary efforts which have resulted in enabling many more people in South Yorkshire to walk and cycle.

“Not only has Sarah quite literally helped put Active Travel on the map by helping us win unprecedented levels of infrastructure funding, but during her time as Commissioner, she has won another seven world titles, three Paralympic medals and broke the world record for the 3000m track! What an outstanding record of achievement.

“It has been a wonderful pleasure to work with Sarah – she really is a superstar and I wish her and her family the very best of luck for the future.”

Mayor Dan Jarvis has written an open letter of thanks to Dame Sarah Storey - read the letter in full (PDF, 365Kb)