Young players from Jeanfield Swifts Community FC recently assisted in the opening of a brand-new active travel path that connects the club’s Riverside Stadium home to local cycle and walking routes, including Perth’s North Inch and the City Centre.

Funding was secured from the Ian Findlay Path Fund through Perth and Kinross Countryside Trust to improve local path networks. The new active travel route links the National Cycle Network and Riverside Stadium to a network of existing paths between Perth Grammar, the North Inch Community Campus and local residential areas, and replaces an informal trail on an area of greenspace managed by Perth and Kinross Council (PKC). PKC has also installed additional bicycle parking at the football ground thanks to funding from Cycling Scotland.

By linking multiple key destinations such as schools, shops, Riverside Church, the football ground and active travel for leisure routes, the new path provides access to safer walking and wheeling options for everyday journeys such as commuting to work and accessing facilities. It is hoped that this will encourage local residents to increase their use of active travel and public transport, and reduce dependency on car usage.

This new active travel link will also make it safer for many of the club’s young people to walk and cycle to training and games, avoiding the need for them to negotiate the entrance to our car park. The club hope that more and more visitors to Riverside Stadium will choose to arrive on foot or by bike, cutting unnecessary car journeys and reducing the burden on car parking in the neighbourhood.

As an organisation that promotes healthy physical activity, Jeanfield Swifts Community FC are very pleased to be able to take part in this project and are grateful to PKCT, Paths for All Ian Findlay Path Fund, Perth and Kinross Council and Cycling Scotland for their support.