FUNDING for a new seafront cycle lane has been granted.

Brighton and Hove City Council has been awarded £1.208m by the Department for Transport (DfT) for a new cycle route on Marine Parade A259 – between Brighton Marina and Brighton Palace Pier.

The funding, which has been awarded from Tranche Three of the government’s Active Travel Fund, is the third instalment of its kind.

The council were awarded £663,000 from Tranche 3 of the fund in June 2020 and a further £2.376m from Tranche 2 in November 2020.

“Our work to encourage active and sustainable travel in Brighton and Hove has been given another huge boost thanks to a successful funding bid,” a council spokesman said.

“This funding is already helping us to deliver a range of active travel and pedestrian improvements, including the A259 and the A23 - a key route linking eastern areas of Brighton and Hove with the city centre.”

Work will begin immediately to develop the scheme, with designs subject to public consultation with residents, partners and key stakeholders in the city.

Councillor Steve Davis, co-chairman of the environment, transport and sustainability committee, said: “This is another excellent step towards making Brighton and Hove a city built for active and sustainable travel.

“We want to provide people with a safe and accessible infrastructure that allows them to make travel choices that are emissions free and can help us tackle the ongoing climate emergency.

“Marine Parade is one of the strategic routes prioritised in the Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan that councillors approved earlier this year (March 2022) and so being able to deliver on this so quickly will be great for taking that long term vision forward.”

The council will also be collecting monitoring and evaluation data and working with Active Travel England - a new Government body set up to support and oversee active travel projects which is headed by Olympic champion Chris Boardman MBE.