The funding will aid projects that intend to make walking, wheeling, cycling and horse riding safer, easier and more desirable for day-to-day travel, while enhancing connections between communities and helping local businesses as well as the visitor economy.

The progress on the funding comes after efforts by the Council’s Active Travel and Transport Team and Design Team, with the projects aligning with Scottish Borders Council’s Active Travel Strategy.

Councillor Jenny Linehan, executive member for Environment, Sustainability and Transport, said: “These projects will help improve connections between our towns and villages, support healthier and more sustainable everyday journeys and make it easier for residents and visitors to move around the Borders by walking, wheeling, cycling and horse riding.”

Steven Flynn, cabinet secretary for Economy, Tourism and Transport said: “Projects like these help connect communities, support healthier lifestyles, strengthen local economies and encourage more sustainable travel choices for residents and visitors alike.

“This investment forms part of the Scottish Government’s wider commitment to active and sustainable travel, with £226 million being invested this year.”

Flynn added: “This will help deliver high-quality infrastructure and give people right across Scotland more opportunities to choose active travel as part of their daily lives.”

Projects which will get construction funding include:

• Eddleston Water Bridge to Fotheringham Bridge (River Tweed Trail - Peebles Section), continuing the River Tweed Trail project and delivering a shared use path from the Tweed Valley Railway Path through Peebles to Haylodge Park, subject to planning.
• Lauder to Oxton – remaining phases (4B, 5A and 5C), aiding the remaining works on the shared use path, subject to planning permission, landowner negotiations as well as other required consents.
• Lowood Care Village path connection – delivering a 210-metre walking and wheeling path linking the main access road to the Care Village and delivering a direct link from the estate’s main entrance to Tweedbank Train Station.
• Drygrange to Leaderfoot Active Travel Corridor – providing a 1.3-kilometre shared-use active travel route between Drygrange and the Old Drygrange Bridge at the Leaderfoot Viaduct, delivering a key active travel parallel to the A68 trunk road, subject to final consents.
• St Abbs to Coldingham Coastal Path, upgrading the current narrow Berwickshire coastal path to a 2-metre wide walking and wheeling path, subject to necessary consents.

Projects which will get design funding include:

• Hawick to Selkirk Active Travel Corridor, aiding the ongoing development and detailed design of a proposed active travel route between Hawick and Selkirk.
• Hawick to Denholm Active Travel Corridor, aiding the continued development and detailed design of a proposed active travel route between Hawick and Denholm.
• Peebles to Penicuik, aiding a feasibility study into a potential link between Peebles and the Midlothian boundary, developing active travel infrastructure between Peebles, Eddleston and Shiplaw.
• Borders Greenway, advancing detailed design work on the Chirnside to Reston section as part of wider plans to form a route between Tweedbank and Eyemouth.
   

All work on the projects is anticipated to reach completion by 31 March next year.

Looking ahead, the council will be giving updates as projects advance during the stages of planning, consent and delivery.