AROUND £80 million of Government funding is set to be invested in an ambitious programme of local transport improvements across Leicester over the next five years.
Leicester City Council has been allocated £59 million of Local Transport Grant funding for the four years from 2026, following the Chancellor’s 2025 Spending Review.
Although detailed guidelines are yet to be published, the long-term funding will allow the city council to plan and deliver and local transport improvements and services up until 2030.
City Mayor Peter Soulsby said: “The recent announcement of Local Transport Grant funding up until 2030 is very welcome. It will provide the funding certainty needed to make long-term and ambitious plans to maintain and improve the city’s transport network for all users.
“It will allow us to build on the successes of our local Transforming Cities programme and the major investment being made in the city’s bus services in recent years.”
Additional government grant funding for highways maintenance, as well as specific funding from the Bus Service Improvement Plan and Active Travel England grant schemes, supporting walking and cycling, is expected to be confirmed later this year.
Meanwhile, the city council has set out the local transport projects that will be delivered over the coming year using a range of Government grants already allocated and totalling almost £22 million.
Over £9.3 million for the Government’s Bus Service Improvement Plan grant will support the purchase of up to 48 new electric buses, helping the city move closer to its target of having a fully electric bus network in place by 2030.
The popular Hop! Bus service – which provides a free to use and fully electric bus shuttle service to key locations around the city centre – will also continue to be funded.
The remaining £12.6 million of Government grant funding allocation for 2025/26 will be invested in range of highways maintenance and local transport improvement schemes over the next 12 months.
These include major planned resurfacing and maintenance schemes on Melton Road and Aylestone Road; a rolling programme of pedestrian crossing improvements across the city; and highway access improvements supporting new housing and other developments at key regeneration sites including Ashton Green and the St George’s Cultural Quarter.
A new maintenance programme to replace street lighting columns and illuminated street signs will also get under way; a neighbourhood improvement fund will be established to support local public realm improvements; and improvements to routes for walkers, wheelers and cyclists will be carried out at Orwell Drive, Newstead Road, Abbey Gate and Knighton Drive.
The planned transport investment programme for 2025-26 is due to be considered at the next meeting of the council’s Economic Development, Transport and Climate Emergency scrutiny commission on Wednesday 25 June.