The UK’s chief medical officer has told a York event the case needs to be made for the health benefits of active travel despite it not being politically easy.

Saturday, 5 July 2025 00:55

By Joe Gerrard

Chris Whitty told the Active City York conference that the smallest changes to help people walk, wheel and cycle could transform people’s health for the better.

But he added the weight of science and data needed to be thrown behind active travel as the issue had become increasingly politicised.

The chief medical officer’s comments came as the Local Transport Minister Simon Lightwood told attendees the Government was moving on from divisive rhetoric around the issue.

The Labour minister said framing the support of measures to boost walking, wheeling and cycling as a war on motorists had been poisonous.

He added the Government was looking very carefully at how to tackle pavement parking amid calls to ban it and said decisions about 20mph speed limits should be made locally.

His comments came as regional mayors including York and North Yorkshire’s David Skaith backed a commitment to create a nationwide walking, wheeling and cycling network.

Improvements focusing on school runs will be prioritised as part of the wider project which aims to create more than 3,500 miles of safer routes across the country.

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