Transport, travel and digital connectivity

What we want to achieve

To reduce emissions from road transport and meet our air quality objectives. Digital connectivity has a vital role to play in achieving that goal, so we want to encourage digital transformation, nurture innovation, and ensure accessibility.

How we will do this

We have set out a range of actions for how Medway can respond to the climate emergency. These range from actions that the council will take to lead by example, to those that will support the community to act.

In our Refreshed Climate Change Action Plan, we highlighted 15 actions that are a priority to support our journey to net-zero. The following action is marked as a priority:

 

svgImgReplace the council fleet of small vehicles (owned and leased) with electric by end of first carbon budget (2027) or where possible at next point of exchange (latest 2025) and once EV (electric vehicle) charge points are in place.

Examples of other actions we will be taking:


svgImgDevelop and deliver an anti-idling campaign across Medway.

car iconComplete the review and adoption of the revised essential car user policy, which says how far you must drive to get an essential car user allowance. This will fix the fact that the current policy does not work with the council's climate change initiative.

cycle iconExplore options to support more sustainable travel incentives including staff cycle hire schemes, showers, cycle storage and improve the way the council communicates about existing incentives for staff.

bus iconProduce a timetable to refresh Medway’s Local Transport Plan to further facilitate a dramatic shift in priorities to public transport and active travel, and to reflect net zero carbon ambition, growth, emerging technologies and government legislation.

Our progress so far

  • Following the award of funding from the DEFRA Air Quality Fund to undertake an anti-idling campaign in Rainham, work will commence in partnership with the University of Kent in autumn 2022. 
  • There are now over 80 miles of dedicated cycle lanes in Medway. Officers are currently developing a Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan ‘LCWIP’ to build upon the 80+ miles of cycle route on Medway’s network, as part of the council’s Capability Fund allocation from the Department for Transport (DfT). This will include other active travel revenue workstreams, including schools and workplace initiatives, resources and a dedicated officer. 
  • We have installed 34 electric vehicle charging points in 3 council-owned car parks in Medway and opened an electric vehicle charging point survey to encourage residents to suggest locations for on-street charging.
  • Officers have worked with Kent County Council and other Kent districts on feasibility studies for the development of a Kent wide charge point network. The project will bring EV charge points to about 30 public car park locations within Medway and around 150 countywide. Feasibility studies have been completed and Cabinet approval is now in place. This will be in addition to the 34 charge points installed during Summer 2021. 
  • We hosted our first EV Event at Rochester Castle Gardens. This was an opportunity for the public to see the options available to them and learn more about EVs and the infrastructure in place to support them in switching to an electric vehicle.
  • We have supported a variety of active travel and initiatives. We have continued to work with the KM Charity to promote the Walk on Wednesday ‘WOW’ initiative, with about 3,000 children across Medway participating. Likewise, the Sustrans Big Walk and Wheel campaign was promoted to Medway schools in March and April 2022, with 2,440 schools having registered nationally and close to 8 million children having participated. As a result, 80% of pupils attending St Margaret’s at Troy Town Primary School in Rochester walked or cycled during the 2-week campaign and 81% of students at Greenacre Academy in Walderslade, achieving 6th place nationally.
  • Medway Schools were invited to take part in our Walk to School COP26 initiative in October 2021. It is estimated that over 5 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e) were saved by students walking to school rather than driving.
  • Other active travel focused campaigns promoted during the year include National Walk to School Week in May 2022 and Bike Week in June 2022.
  • 2 more sites (A229 Maidstone Road junction with ASDA and Princes Avenue junction with Dove Close in Walderslade) have been connected to the Urban Traffic Control system (UTC), allowing remote monitoring of the signals. This means that faults can be detected and corrected quickly and remotely, minimising congestion.
  • Continued to support local businesses to switch to ultra low emission vehicles via the Kent REVS scheme. The scheme is regularly promoted via leaflet, website, and newsletter. Since the scheme started in February 2021, 15 Medway businesses have participated.

Read all the actions

To read all the actions in our plan:

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