Too often our towns and cities have been designed to get cars, rather than people, moving.  

The Ramblers want to change this. We want walking to be a more practical, pleasant option for getting around towns and cities. Streets that are green, safe and well connected encourage walking for everyday journeys and for leisure.  

They promote good physical health and mental wellbeing. They also encourage social interaction, help combat poor air quality and mitigate climate change. 

 

What we have achieved so far 

As members of the Walking and Cycling Alliance – a coalition of the UK’s leading walking and cycling organisations – we are campaigning for new measures to get more people walking and cycling, including: 

• lower traffic speeds 

• bans on pavement parking 

• changes to the Highway Code and other rules of the road 

• traffic reduction 

• changes to the planning system that make it easier to walk and cycle 

• green walking and cycling routes that help everyone enjoy nature 

 

What we want to see in the future 

In 2021, the government announced their ambition to create ‘a world class cycling and walking network for England by 2040’. This change will in part be driven by Active Travel England (ATE) – a new inspectorate responsible for promoting good design, approving funding, inspecting schemes and publishing reports on highway authorities’ performance on active travel.  

The Ramblers are keen to support ATE and to encourage them to have broad vision that supports walking for everyday journeys and for leisure. The Ramblers are calling on Active Travel England to: 

• Champion high quality green leisure routes 

• Bring transport and planning decision making closer together 

• Connect urban and rural walking infrastructure 

• Support social prescribing

As a charity, you can support our work to protect and improve our access rights and green spaces by donating or becoming a member.   Together we’ll increase access to green spaces, open up more places to walk and boost Britain’s wellbeing one step at a time.