Gloucestershire County Council is set to transform Arle Court Park and Ride into a transport hub with a £20m upgrade focussed on sustainable and active travel.

County council's cabinet will be asked to approve the search for a contractor to carry out the work at the site now known as Arle Court Transport Hub.

Improvements to the site will increase green transport options as well as provide support for more housing and jobs in west and north-west Cheltenham.

The proposals include:

• 100 electric vehicle charging spaces, with the capability to increase the number of spaces in the future

• Green measures including solar panels to provide power for the site

• Approximately doubling the site's parking capacity

• More space and parking for buses to help increase services in future including long distance coaches and electric buses

• A passenger waiting room to add convenience and comfort to people's journeys

• Better access to Cheltenham particularly for those walking, cycling and on E-scooters

• Secure cycle storage

Councillor David Gray, cabinet member for environment and planning, said: "We know how important it is to provide more practical and attractive travel options to help people to reduce their carbon footprint and contribute to improving our air quality. With increased housing proposed in the area it's also essential that we continue to upgrade our transport infrastructure and do so in a way that builds in sustainability. This is also another project that will help us towards reaching our ambitious carbon reduction ambitions as a county."

This comes after the site temporarily lost 60 parking spaces last summer to allow room for a construction compound of the West Cheltenham Transport Improvement Scheme. A slip road from the park and ride onto the Golden Valley was built.

Currently, the plans for the transport hub are in the early stages with a planning application likely to be submitted to Cheltenham Borough Council in late 2021. If the application is successful the scheme could start as early as autumn 2022 and take around 12 months to complete.

The Arle Court Transport Hub scheme will be funded through the successful bid to the Government's Housing Infrastructure Fund (HIF), for £249m for the M5 Junction 10 Improvements Scheme.