New track will help youngsters improve cycle skills

Youngsters can now hone their cycling skills on a brand new training track at Stratford Recreation Ground, designed to help them stay safe on the roads.

The track is being paid for by part of the £1.5million Stratford District Council was awarded from the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership for the Riverside Project.

While other elements of that scheme remain controversial, the cycle track on the Rec has already won admiring comments on social media.

The layout of the track, located in the south eastern corner of the Rec, is a stylised version of the town centre roads to give some authenticity to it, as are the road signs and names. Road markings, pedestrian crossings and even working traffic lights aim to make the area as realistic as possible.

It follows the recent addition of a timber play area at the Rec for older children.

Cllr Tony Jefferson, leader of Stratford-on-Avon District Council, said: “Both the play area and cycle track are fantastic additions for children visiting the Recreation Ground. A safe space for youngsters to master riding their bikes is essential for encouraging cyclists of the future and is a great way to have fun and keep fit.”

Sarah Windrum, chair of the CWLEP, said: “It is great to see the cycle training area and outdoor play area already in action thanks to the allocation from the Getting Building Fund which was partly established to facilitate infrastructure projects such as this.

“These facilities are part of the wider Riverside scheme which is an integral part of the CWLEP’s Strategic Reset Framework for a green and sustainable future for the area.

“This will involve designing more environmentally-friendly routes into Stratford-upon-Avon and further promoting walking and cycling to improve air quality and health and wellbeing which will lead to more leisure and economic opportunities.”