Milton Keynes has attracted more than £9m in new government funding for a range of public transport improvements and for regeneration schemes in Bletchley.

The campaign to acquire the funding, which has been awarded as part of the government’s Sustainable Communities Plan Growth Area Budget, has been led by national regeneration agency, English Partnerships, working with the Council and other local partners

The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) has allocated a total of £6.3m - over a two-year period - to the Central Milton Keynes Traffic Management and Bus Priority Scheme. The Scheme puts forward a range of proposals to manage traffic congestion and make public transport more reliable and efficient. It also includes measures to improve cycling and pedestrian access, create safer routes to school, increase traffic calming, improve street lighting and add more bus lanes and upgraded bus stops.

Dennis Hone, Regional Director for English Partnerships said: “Milton Keynes has been identified as a key growth area in the South East and we need to ensure that we put in place a transport strategy within CMK that can support this growth.”

“Early improvements, in advance of demand, will be crucial in allowing the CMK development programme to move ahead. This funding will allow English Partnerships and the Council to put these measures in place now rather than waiting for future development to cover the costs.”

There are two separate components to the Scheme covering the development of new housing areas within CMK at Campbell Park and in the Sustainable Residential Quarter. The key aim of the Scheme is to improve accessibility to these areas by public transport and to ensure that extra traffic generated by new development does not impede access to the centre of the town and minimises road congestion.

In a second bid for funding under the Sustainable Communities Plan, a Bletchley regeneration proposal has been awarded £3m following a bid led by English Partnerships, along with Milton Keynes Council and SEEDA (South East Regional Development Agency).

The funding will be used to kick-start the regeneration of a site that contains more than 25,000 sq m of unused floor space and additional undeveloped land within and adjacent to, Bletchley Park.

Proposals include the creation of a masterplan that will contribute to, and integrate with, the existing regeneration plans for Central Bletchley. The provision of new infrastructure and access will enhance development opportunities and help attract private sector funding according to the bid team.