MORE than a dozen projects have been given the green light by Stirling Council to support active travel and economic recovery from the pandemic.

The 16 initiatives across the Stirling area, backed by £513,000, will include cycle infrastructure, reduced speed limits in certain areas, widened paths, artwork, signage and traffic calming measures.

All will move to the implementation stage and are located in Stirling, Bannockburn, Whins of Milton, Bridge of Allan, Dunblane, Aberfoyle, Callander, Plean, Fallin, Gargunnock and Killearn.

The projects come after the council initially secured funding for nine projects from Sustrans’ Spaces for People Fund, before consulting with the public and other key stakeholders for three weeks in October to ensure the proposals met the needs of communities.

Members of the Environment and Housing Committee at Stirling Council last week noted a report in the finalised projects and the consultation exercise.

It was agreed hat the committee would be consulted on the allocation of any underspend.

Councillor Jim Thomson, convener of the committee, said: “It was vital we engaged with communities across Stirling to ensure these projects met the needs of local people who know these areas better than anyone.

“The feedback from residents has proved invaluable in shaping the proposals, and it’s fantastic that nearly half of the successful schemes have been proposed by residents which is a sign of a positive engagement process.

“It shows this was the right thing to do and we will continue to engage with communities as work on these important projects gets underway.”