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Connect2 a slice of £50m Lottery cake for a new footbridge in Shoreham
Ref : 07/111 : Date : 26-11-2007
Your
vote could make the difference : Online voting opens 26-11-2007
The first opportunity to help bring a slice of a £50 million Big Lottery Fund grant to Adur starts today - so everyone is encouraged to get online to support Sustrans’ Connect2, and transform walking and cycling in our region. By going to www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/prog_the_peoples_50_million.htm and voting for Sustrans’ Connect2 everyone can help bring new local travel routes to the doorstep, making it easier for millions of people: both locally, and across the UK to walk and cycle for everyday journeys. Internet voting starts today, Monday 26 November 2007, at 9.00 am and closes at 12 noon on Monday 10 December 2007.
79 communities around the UK, including the footbridge in Shoreham, would benefit from the sustainable transport charity winning the £50 million grant in the Big Lottery Fund’s: The People’s £50 Million contest in December. Connect2 would build bridges, foot and cycle paths, and even reinstate a ferry, giving people easier and healthier access to their schools, workplaces, shops, parks and countryside. Connect2 is competing against 3 other organisations, with the winner being decided by public vote.
Shoreham’s footbridge is one of the 79 projects and the only one is West Sussex to get this far. Adur Council put in the bid to be part of this project at the beginning of the year because it realised the benefits a new bridge would bring to the area. Built in the 1920s and owned by West Sussex County Council the footbridge is coming to the end of its life. If Connect2 wins the televised vote the project to build a new bridge is earmarked to receive £750,000.
Sustrans’ Chief Executive John Grimshaw says, “Now’s your chance to make sure some of that £50 million Lottery money benefits people here in Adur. Log on to www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/prog_the_peoples_50_million.htm and vote for Sustrans’ Connect2, and get your friends, family and colleagues to do the same. A vote for Connect2 is a vote for a healthier more sustainable future, for us - and our children: just a minute of your time could make all the difference. And if you don’t have access to the internet, look for the programme about Connect2 on ITV1 on 4 December*, or text Connect2 to 80010 or call us on lo-call number 0845 058 13 73 and we’ll send you the voteline number as soon as we know on 7 December.”
Broadcaster Jon Snow (Channel 4 News) says, “I’m backing Sustrans’ Connect2 Lottery bid to bring good news to the UK’s pedestrians and cyclists. Connect2 will make a real difference to communities across the UK, giving more people, including schoolchildren and commuters, the chance to travel in ways which benefit their health and the environment.”
TV presenter Lorraine Kelly is leading the Connect2 bid, along with former minister Charles Clarke. Connect2 is also supported by author Bill Bryson, designer Wayne Hemingway and actor Alistair McGowan, among others.
Each of the bids will be highlighted in programmes on ITV1 in the week commencing 3 December. Sustrans’ Connect2 will be featured on 4 December. The winner will be announced on 12 December.
For more information about Connect2 visit www.sustransconnect2.org.uk, call 0845 058 13 73 or text Connect2 to 80010.
Ends
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