Somerset’s 4-year Local Transport Delivery Plan, focusing on active travel and accessibility, has been endorsed by the Council’s Executive.
The Council must submit its spending plans to the Government for the first of the 4 years by 20 March setting out where money will be spent in 2026 to 2027, including road maintenance, bus services and active travel.
The plan focuses on active travel, accessibility and local transport and has been developed with input from a range of organisations and interest groups including Somerset Bus Advisory Board, the Local Community Networks’ Active Travel Group and bus passenger groups.
Accessibility plays a key role in the plan to make sure that everyone can use local transport easily and safely, from buses, cycleways and pavements to street lighting, bus stops and rail stations.
The plan includes preparation for the Government’s Project Coral providing a back-office system for multi-operator tickets and real-time information at key transport interchanges.
It covers proposed spending on:
- Active travel
- Bus service enhancement
- Traffic signals renewal and refurbishment
- Bus shelters
- Transport hubs
- Bus priority scheme
- Road safety
- Better integration with rail services
- Highways maintenance
Improvements to the rights of way network are in the plan, along with road safety schemes at collision hotspots and a countywide programme to improve the condition of Somerset’s roads.
Following Government announcements in December 2025, 2 funding streams are now available:
- the Bus Services Fund and
- the Integrated Transport Fund.
The allocations, both revenue and capital funding, total £282.75m over the 4 years.
Councillor Richard Wilkins, Lead Member for Transport and Waste Services, said:
I would like to thank everyone who has helped shaped this plan within a very tight timeframe.
While we will continue to maintain our road network and assets like traffic signals, we are keen to encourage more people to look at alternatives to the car, where appropriate, whether it’s walking, wheeling and cycling, or using public transport.
It is important that alternatives are accessible and are safe and easy to use.
