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You are here: Home > News > Watermead Country Park Set To Benefit From Connect 2 Scheme

• Watermead Country Park set to benefit from Connect 2 scheme

• Date:

  20th February 2008

• Contact:

  Sarah Egerton

• Organisation:

  The Civic Trust

Plans for a £1.4 million scheme to improve links in and around Watermead Country Park have been announced following the success of cycling network Sustrans in winning the public vote in the Big Lottery Fund’s: The People’s £50 Million contest for its Connect2 scheme. The park's exciting plans are currently on show in libraries across Leicestershire.

The Green Flag Award-winning site won £700,000 towards the project through the People’s £50million lottery fund in December last year. The £50 million was shared between 79 similar ‘Connect2’ schemes up and down the country, following a public vote. 42% of the public voted for ‘Connect 2’.

Work is expected to start before the summer, and will be completed over the next five years Visitors to the library exhibitions will be able to view various aspects of this exciting project, including new bridges, paths and road crossings, viewing individual schemes which form the project, and ask questions or comment on the proposals.

The Connect2 display will be at Syston Library until 29th February. It will then be on show at Thurmaston Library until the 7th March and finally heads to the Peepul Centre until Friday 14th March. Two further venues for the plans to go on display will be announced.

Ernie White, Cabinet Member for Community Services said, “We are delighted to have won the money, and now we just want to get on with making these exciting plans happen. The Park itself is already pretty good for cyclists. The changes over the next five years will greatly improve accessibility into and around the park for everybody who uses it.”

Sustrans’ Connect2 will revitalise walking and cycling in 79 communities across the UK by creating new routes for the local journeys we all make every day. In December 2007 this ambitious UK-wide project won the public vote in the Big Lottery Fund’s: The People’s £50 Million contest which means that the 79 Connect2 schemes to transform local travel in communities from Ballymoney to Bradford, Cardiff to Carlisle and London Paddington to Perth will now go ahead.  As a result many more of us will be able to get around on foot or by bike, helping us to get fit and active and to reduce our carbon footprint.

Updates on the scheme will appear on http://www.leics.gov.uk/connect2