Plans for a £1.2 million cycling and walking route are being finalised and people are being asked for their views.

Sevenoaks council hopes the Sevenoaks Town East to West Walking, Wheeling and Cycling Route will encourage people to cycle and walk to school and work to ease traffic on the A25.

It says the plan “will provide a safe, environmentally friendly alternative to the car, helping to improve our health and air quality while cutting our carbon footprint”.

The 2.4-mile route includes a new one-way system in Bradbourne Park Road but residents feel it may have “unintended consequences”.

Town council mayor Cllr Claire Shea spoke to residents about the road on Monday, July 3 during a consultation meeting.

She said: “Some residents and members of the council would like to see an altered version of the plan that has a shared route with cars.

“The one-way road would make alternative routes busier.

“These other routes are unsuitable as they are narrow roads with on-street parking but we have asked engineers to come up with an alternative.

“This is really important for us to get right as it is the first dedicated cycle and walking route but it could be the first of several.

“There are plans in the future for other cycle and walking routes that will bring greater connectivity to the town and surrounding areas, including a north-south route to Otford.”

The consultation period lasts until July 14. Click here to take part in the survey.

Seven schools will be connected on the route from Amherst school in the west to Weald of Kent and Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys annexes in the east.

Cllr Tony Clayton (Lib Dem), who represents Sevenoaks Eastern on the district council, said the purpose of the route was to make it safe for cyclists to travel across the town.

He said: “The cyclists of Sevenoaks have been thinking about a route like this for nearly 15 years.

“It’s vital that it works and that it encourages new cyclists to get on their bikes.

“School traffic has gone through the roof with school children doubling in number over the last 10 years.

“We want to make it safe for these school children to cycle to school as the A25 is unsafe for cyclists.”

The money comes from the national government’s Active Travel England fund following a successful bid by Kent County Council.

It comes after Kent Online reported that Faversham had been awarded £1m for its own cycling and walking route in May.

Council bosses in Faversham hope their project will result in it becoming Kent’s first “walking and cycling town”.