Places for Everyone
The Places for Everyone (PfE) programme was launched in 2019, and responded to a sharp increase in Active Travel funding at the time (£81.5m in 2019-20, more than double the £40m budget in 2018-19). PfE is open to LAs, public bodies, businesses, third sector organisations and community organisations, and provides funding and expertise to help deliver walking, wheeling, and cycling improvements across the country. Managed by Sustrans and funded by Transport Scotland, the programme provides 100% funding for concept and design stages and up to 70% funding for construction stages through a grant.
Applications were assessed against the aims and objectives of the programme:
“…Places for Everyone aims to create safer, more attractive, healthier, and inclusive places which are enjoyed equitably by increasing and diversifying the number of trips made by walking, wheeling for everyday journeys.
Places for Everyone projects must achieve one or more of the following objectives:
- Increase the number of everyday journeys made by walking, wheeling, or cycling.
- Support more trips to school made by walking, wheeling, or cycling.
- Improve physical and perceived safety for people walking, wheeling, or cycling.
- Make walking, wheeling, or cycling more inclusive for the project community, taking into account all protected characteristics.
- Improve the quality of current walking, wheeling, or cycling infrastructure.
- Positively impact areas identified by the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) as among the 20% most deprived” (from Sustrans Places for Everyone Application Guide 2023)
In addition to funding LAs, £8.3m was allocated to projects in 2023-24 brought forward by other delivery bodies including Regional Transport Partnerships, Scotland’s Railways, Scottish Canals, and many others.
Overall, PfE supported 376 projects, with 29 constructed, 8 completing design stage, and 339 under development. PfE projects contain a variety of types of Active Travel infrastructure, with a focus on shared surfaces, cycle paths, footways, and public realm improvements. Dropped kerbs and cycle storage are also a frequent element of PfE schemes.
In 2023-24 four projects received over £6m each – these were Broughty Ferry NCN Improvements (Dundee), City Centre West to East Link (CCWEL) and Roseburn to Union Canal (Edinburgh), and Walk Cycle Live Stirling. The overall average cost for a construction project was £1.3m, while the average cost for a design project was £435k.
While this report focusses solely on infrastructure, PfE (and NCN) also delivers a range of non-infrastructure schemes and projects such as behaviour change interventions to support projects being developed and delivered. As part of the transition towards the new tiered delivery model for Active Travel infrastructure, the PfE programme will be wound down by December 2025.
| Year | Investment | New infrastructure length | Upgraded infrastructure length | Projects supported | Partners supported | Average construction cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-24 | £76 million | 15.9km | 10.8km | 376 | 14 LAs, 41 other groups | £1.3m |
Case Study: City Centre West to East Link (Edinburgh)
The CCWEL route was officially opened in March 2024 to connect Roseburn to the West End of Edinburgh. Consultation for this 3.6km bi-directional cycle route began in 2016, with construction starting in 2022. The project protects cyclists from heavy traffic through a segregated design and has also improved crossings and footways.
Funded by Transport Scotland through Sustrans’ PfE programme, £14.8m was awarded to the project (of a total project cost of £23m). The project connects with the Roseburn to Union Canal project (officially opened in December 2024) and there are plans to connect with George Street to further improve infrastructure across Edinburgh city centre. The project is expected to improve safety for users, including for those travelling to nearby schools, and benefit the local economy through better access to shops and services.