Construction has started on the $23m Connect Historic Boston project in the US, which will improve pedestrian and bicyclist access to Boston and various local historic sites.

The project will use a $15.5m transportation investment generating economic recovery (TIGER) grant.

The TIGER programme funds transformative projects and helps communities to keep in pace with expanding and diverse travel needs.

"This project will not only change the transportation landscape but it will provide more commuting choices and better access to jobs for local residents."

US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said: "This project will not only change the transportation landscape but it will provide more commuting choices and better access to jobs for local residents."

Following completion, the project will rebuild and widen an inadequate, ageing system of paths and sidewalks, along Joy Street, Constitution Road and the Blackstone Block, as well as between Haymarket and Faneuil Hall.

The project will also include a new bike trail around downtown, which will feature buffered, protected bike lanes, special paving to separate the trail from the roadways and pedestrian walkways, and two-lane tracks for cyclists.

The new bike trail will better connect cyclists with other paths and transit stations throughout the area.

Earlier this year, the government has proposed the Grow America Act, a $478bn, six-year surface transportation reauthorisation proposal that addresses the needs of ageing infrastructure and a growing population.

The act provides $7.5bn over six years to more than double the funding for the TIGER grant programme.