CYCLISTS travelling along a path that links Ely with Little Downham have called on the county council to improve its safety to encourage more people to ditch their cars and cycle instead.

The footpath that runs alongside the B1411 Downham Road is the focus of a campaign by both residents of the village and local group the Ely Cycling Campaign, which is calling on the county council to make the path shared-use.

Posting on the ShapeYourPlace website, Michael Gruenberger said: “Many more people could do the 10 minute cycle ride from Little Downham to Ely College or to the shops in Ely if only this cycle path was made a tiny bit wider and smoother.”

Little Downham resident Mark Newman added: “The level of traffic and particularly speeds involved on this road surely make it a priority to improve the path for everyone’s’ benefit.

“ I don’t doubt the councils’ view will be based on cost but peoples’ lives, surely, are a more important consideration?”

Residents say that poor surfacing on some parts of the path and the high speed of vehicles using Downham Road, put people off cycling and say that a few simple measures could encourage dozens more people to switch fours wheels for two.

The issue was raised at Little Downham Parish Council in May but councillors felt it was an issue for Cambridgeshire County Council’s highways department.

A spokesman for the county council said, however, that the path had not been given shared status in the past because it was not wide enough.

The spokesman added: “As you may expect, we have already allocated funds for this year’s improvements of highway and paths but we would be more than happy to work with the local community and the parish council to look at how this project may move forward.”