SHIPLEY AND SALTAIRE LOCAL GROUP
With Shipley’s bustling market square and Saltaire’s iconic Gordon Terrace, our local area ought to be a beautiful, healthy, and social space.
But priority is given to the high volume of through traffic, making our main roads amongst the most congested in the UK, and turning a World Heritage Site into a rat run. As a result, our streets are noisy, unsafe, and polluted. We want this to change.
ABOUT US
The national lockdown provided us all with some perspective. We have spent more time at home, got to know our neighbours, and seen a better way – peaceful neighborhoods, stress-free access to the outdoors, birdsong. The fresh air that resulted from reduced traffic was amazing! We can turn a crisis into an opportunity.
More than ever, our local independent businesses need our support. Increasing space to walk, cycle, and socialise has been shown to benefit shops, cafes, and restaurants. We must start with our own community.
Then there’s air pollution – toxic to breathe and especially damaging to the youngest people in our neighbourhood. Bradford Council has declared a climate emergency, and we urgently need to reduce transport emissions. But what can ordinary people do? We can lead change from the bottom up.
We believe it’s time for the residents and businesses of Shipley and Saltaire to lead the way in West Yorkshire. Our vision is for local streets that are truly shared. Streets that are socially and economically successful. Streets that are nice places to reside, shop, and visit. Streets that are living.
And you can help.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Join us to support one or all of our campaigns:
- Increasing active travel in our community.
We need road crossings that give priority to pedestrians of all ages and abilities, enough space to ride and park your bicycle, and safe walking and cycling routes for children and parents on their way to school. - Investing in bus networks that work.
Catching a bus should be the natural first choice for longer journeys. An efficient, connected bus network will better serve commuters, shoppers, and day-trippers, in addition to providing a lifeline for the elderly and low-income families in our community. - Reducing congestion and air pollution. Less traffic benefits all road users, including those making essential journeys by car. We will hold the Council to account on illegal levels of air pollution, its commitment to the climate emergency, and the proposed clean air zone.
- Ending inconsiderate, dangerous, and noisy driving. Improving the standard of driving, alongside better enforcement, will make all journeys less stressful and safer, and bring down the cost of car insurance. Together we can stand up to the inconsiderate minority, and restore the peace and beauty of our historic streets.
- Reclaiming space for the community.
The public space on our streets needs to be shared more fairly between vehicles and pedestrians. By creating places to rest and socialise, we will give priority to community over through traffic, and make active travel a more appealing option for all.