Surrey County Council has been awarded more than £5million to create more cycling lanes and walking paths across its boroughs.

The cash is part of the wider Active Travel Fund which the County Council has received twice already since 2020.

The aim of the fund is to reallocate road space to cyclists and pedestrians.

Surrey County Council is planning to use this third injection of cash in seven different projects across different boroughs.

These include segregated cycleways, roundabout upgrades in Reigate and Banstead and Woking, as well as Low Traffic Neighbourhoods and Schools Streets in Spelthorne and Waverley.

Councillor Matt Furniss said: “Improving our road network will enable residents to play their part in helping us become a greener county.

"With 41% of Surrey’s carbon emissions coming from transport, using cars less and choosing to travel more sustainably will help us in our mission to become net zero carbon by 2050.”

Surrey’s road network usage is higher than the South East England average and almost double the national average of traffic.

Results from a Surrey Residents’ Survey showed that 42 per cent of respondents were dissatisfied with road congestion.

The County Council also has plans to create walking infrastructures in many of its towns.

One of these plans is in place already in Woking but further plans in place for other boroughs such as Reigate and Banstead.

The proposals for this new round of funding will go to public consultation later this year, with the aim for projects to commence during 2023.

The scheme is part of the government’s new agency Active Travel England’s £200 million funding package, which has been distributed to many councils across the country.

Its aim is to boost air quality and people’s physical and mental health.

This is one aspect of a wider commitment from Prime Minister Boris Johnson who announced an unprecedented two billion pounds for walking and cycling back in 2020.