How do you get around? 

Connecting communities through public and active transport is essential for a sustainable future. 

We often look at this on a national scale but one group on the Dengie Peninsula in the Maldon District is advocating for it in a local way.

I spoke to James Taylor who launched a project called rECOnnect Dengie in September as part of the Dengie Climate Action Partnership.

They plan to campaign for the improvement of local walk, cycle and public transport routes and encourage their use for utility rather than just leisure.

The use of active transport such as walking and cycling is commonplace in urban areas, but sustainability is vital in all areas.

This is reflected in the Essex Transport Strategies which has a great vision for this, but the focus is on leisure when it comes to rural areas, which makes campaigns like James’ vital.

rECOnnect Dengie takes inspirations from Slow Ways who create networks of walking routes to connect towns and cities, prioritising using them to get somewhere for a purpose.

A key aspect of the project will be collecting information on where current routes are and tackling issues with them as they arise.

For example, the group may identify short areas for pavement or cycle lane installation to link other existing pathways and make longer active routes. 

This could help target council budgets for the biggest impacts.

Many people are stopped from taking active transport by these intervening obstacles creating an unsafe feeling, and removing these is a massive opportunity to encourage more use and reduce carbon emissions.

We chatted about why this is important.

Initially, I thought this topic was quite niche and was not sure of the potential impact.

However, transport is the largest carbon emissions sector and switching the mindset on small journeys in more of our communities could have a big impact.

Active transport routes could drastically reduce the 72% of car journeys which are under 5 miles (government data 2021).

This would also reduce the car dependency burden on many individuals who have a mountain of costs like fuel, tax, insurance, MOT, servicing and repairs with a switch to more social solutions -  along with an extra bonus of added health benefits!

This can be part of a multi-faceted switch to more sustainable ways of living - as James said:

We need to get rid of the thinking that the solution is just to pull one thing out such as fossil fuels and push something else in its place such as electric cars.

If you are local to the Dengie Peninsula, the project would greatly appreciate any help.

Get in contact via the Dengie Climate Action Partnerships email - dengieclimateaction@yahoo.com.

I also encourage you to think about how active transport could fit into your life and the life of your community.

Could you take these principles to an initiative in your area?