Council bosses in Manchester are proposing to help residents travel on foot and by bike more easily during the pandemic and in the longer term by creating more pedestrian and cycle-only zones.
Manchester council hopes to gain £600,000 in funding from the government to fund schemes across the country.
Plans include creating temporary pedestrian and cycle-only zones in Stevenson Square in the Northern Quarter, and on Ducie Street, from London Road to Dale Street near Piccadilly station.
The council says it also wants to make 'permanent improvements' to for the city’s cycle network at 20 different locations, as well as create of 'low-traffic filtered neighbourhoods’ in the north and south of the city.
If funding from the Department for Transport is approved, the council says the first phase of work would plug caps in the city's cycle network, including Lower Mosley Street and Princess Road in the city centre, Stretford Road in Hulme, Albert Street in Beswick and Parsonage Road in Withington.
Cycle stands would also be purchased in a bid to better connect Piccadilly, Victoria and Deansgate rail stations for people travelling on foot or by bike, as well as bus hubs at Piccadilly Gardens, Shudehill and Chorlton Street.
It follows the current project to designate part of Deansgate as a pedestrian and cycle zone, and widen pavements so people have enough space to observe social distancing.
Coun Angeliki Stogia, the council's executive member for the environment, planning and transport, said: "Encouraging residents to travel on foot and by bike has long been a key priority for us, in order to help create a healthier, cleaner city.
“In response to the unprecedented challenge of the coronavirus pandemic, we have already carried out significant amounts of work, including footway widening to support pedestrians to socially distance and the creation of a new pedestrian and cycle zone on Deansgate, but we want to do much more to improve the city’s cycling and walking infrastructure as quickly as possible.
"Through this funding bid, we are seeking support for additional work which can be delivered in the short-term, but which also has the potential to secure longer-term benefits for people travelling across the city by bike or on foot.
"We are hopeful of a speedy and positive response to our bid from the government, so that we can get moving urgently with schemes which will complement our significant existing investment in building a safer, greener transport network for Manchester."
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