[4][5] A decade earlier, the Beeching Axe closed many British railways that the government considered underused and too costly.

[4] In the early 1980s, when unemployment rose, the organisation took advantage of government schemes to provide temporary employment to build similar "green routes".

The five-year project, Connect2 was launched in 2006, and it aimed at improving local travel in 79 communities by creating new walking and cycling routes.

[14] The data collected by Sustrans to compile monitoring reports, from traffic counters and user surveys, showed that National Cycle Network usage is predominantly urban and on traffic-free sections.

[15] Sustrans has opponents within organisations that wish to reduce road haulage and motor travel by promoting the expansion of the modern railway network.

It has been accused of being uncompromising on route sharing; an example is the planned section of the Bodmin & Wenford Railway between Boscarne Junction and Wadebridge.

[citation needed] In 2000, requests by EWS and English China Clays to reopen former rail links for freight paths such as the former Weedon to Leamington Spa line were objected to by the charity.

Sustrans refused to support the application unless the rail promoter provided an alternative cycle track; EWS responded it was an uneconomic provision for both reopening and building replacement pathway expenses.

[citation needed] Sustrans have occasionally been criticised by other cycling organisations and activists over allegedly giving approval to cycle facilities regarded by critics as inadequate or dangerous, allowing local councils and similar bodies to reject criticism by pointing out that Sustrans have approved of the design being questioned.