Skip to main content

London’s cycle superhighways get the go ahead

London’s streets will become more accessible for cyclists now that the Transport for London (TfL) Board has approved plans for the construction of four new cycle superhighways and upgrades to the four existing cycle superhighway routes as part of the Mayor’s Cycling Vision. The schemes, which will cost around US$243 million to deliver between now and the end of 2016, will help treble the number of cycle journeys made over the next ten years and transform London’s streets and spaces to places where cyclis
February 5, 2015 Read time: 3 mins
London’s streets will become more accessible for cyclists now that the 1466 Transport for London (TfL) Board has approved plans for the construction of four new cycle superhighways and upgrades to the four existing cycle superhighway routes as part of the Mayor’s Cycling Vision.

The schemes, which will cost around US$243 million to deliver between now and the end of 2016, will help treble the number of cycle journeys made over the next ten years and transform London’s streets and spaces to places where cyclists feel they belong and are safe.

The Cycle Superhighway programme is essential for improving conditions for the hundreds of thousands of people who are already cycling daily in London, as well as help encourage more people to take to two wheels. The new routes, which in total cross nine boroughs, will further help cycling become an integral part of London’s transport network so that anyone can jump on a bike to get to work, to the shops or to discover London. Work to deliver these schemes will now begin within the next month.

Sir Peter Hendy CBE, London’s Transport Commissioner, said: “Cycling is clearly now a major transport option in London, with over 170,000 bike journeys now made across central London every single day. These schemes will revolutionise cycling in the capital and further demonstrate how London is leading the way in making its roads safe for all road users. There will, naturally, be some disruption due to these works but we have some of the world’s leading highway and traffic engineers, traffic models and modellers working tirelessly to ensure that this is kept to a minimum.”

Chris Boardman, British Cycling’s policy advisor, said: “This vision for large-scale, properly segregated cycle ways will make cycling a more attractive transport option, creating a more pleasant, healthy and sustainable London for everyone. The move brings the capital one step closer to creating a true cycling culture to rival cities like Copenhagen and Amsterdam. But most importantly of all, it will set a standard for the rest of the country.”

A wide programme of communication and traffic management will now be carried out to ensure that these works can be delivered with minimum disruption to London’s roads. This includes further investment in sophisticated traffic signal technology, which allows better management of traffic depending on differing conditions at any given time. TfL will also work with businesses along the route to help manage deliveries in the best possible way, providing advice to enable them to move away from deliveries during the busiest times and help reduce unnecessary congestion across London.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • TfL and Cubic agree to licence London’s contactless ticketing system for use worldwide
    July 14, 2016
    Transport for London (TfL) has announced its contactless ticketing system is set to be used by other major cities across the globe as part of a deal worth up to US$20 million (£15 million, which will be used to help deliver a fares freeze that the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan has announced across TfL services for the next four years. TfL signed a deal with Cubic Transportation Systems (CTS), allowing them to adapt the capital’s contactless ticketing system worldwide. It is the first of a number of plann
  • TfL wins international road safety award
    December 19, 2016
    Transport for London (TfL) has been recognised with the Prince Michael of Kent Road Safety Awards for its work to improve the safety of cyclists, pedestrians and motorcyclists in London. Analysis of police collision and travel demand data led TfL to put in place a range of initiatives which contributed to a three per cent drop in the number of people killed and seriously injured on London’s streets (2,092) in 2015, its lowest ever level. Projects included the launch of the Safer Lorry Scheme, the in
  • UK’s first low level cycle signals installed
    January 27, 2014
    The first low level traffic signals specifically designed for cyclists in the UK have been installed in London, following extensive safety trials by Transport for London (TfL) on behalf of the Mayor. Low level cycle signals have been common place in certain parts of Europe for many years, but have never been approved for use in the UK. During off-street trials, which were carried out in partnership with the Department for Transport (DfT) last year, more than 80 per cent of cyclists favoured the use of lo
  • Cycling data suggests rise in bike use in European cities
    February 16, 2024
    New figures from France, Italy and the UK demonstrate uptick in active travel