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Londoners encouraged to have their say on major upgrades to CS8 cycle route

Have your say on improvements to CS8 cycle route between Chelsea Bridge and Wandsworth Town Centre.

TfL is asking people for feedback on its latest series of upgrades to CS8, which have seen the cycle route improved through a number of trial changes including protected space for people cycling, wider cycle lanes and lower speed limits to reduce road danger.

Creating enough space for people to walk and cycle safely is vital to ensuring a sustainable and healthy recovery from the coronavirus pandemic for everybody who lives and works in London.

The route is in the top five per cent of cycle routes in London in terms of having the greatest potential for people to cycle. The changes that have been introduced so far have led to a significant increase in the numbers of people cycling.

Cycle counts carried out by TfL along the upgraded CS8 route show that up to 2,650 people are using the route every day, with an average increase of 30% on weekdays compared to the 2014-19 average - despite a drop in the overall number of journeys being made across London during the pandemic.

Counts also suggest an average of 1,600 people a day are using the route at weekends.

Extra cycle journeys

Beginning in February this year, TfL introduced a number of changes to the route between Chelsea Bridge and Wandsworth Town Centre to enable thousands of extra cycle journeys a week.

These include a wider, protected cycle lane southbound on Chelsea Bridge, wider cycle lanes with sections of protected space on Battersea Park Road and a new protected cycle lane southbound on Ram Street in Wandsworth Town Centre.

20mph speed limits have been introduced along large sections of the route and a banned right turn onto York Place to reduce conflict with motor vehicles.

The engagement process will be open for the next six months and will encourage people to tell TfL how the new route has changed their neighbourhood and the way they travel.

TfL will use this engagement to help decide whether it is necessary to make any changes to the trial schemes and whether they should stay in place permanently.

Full details are available on the TfL website at tfl.gov.uk/Chelseabridge-wandsworth.

Value opinions

Will Norman, London's Walking and Cycling Commissioner, yesterday said:

“We are continuing to do all we can to support the increasing numbers of Londoners who are walking and cycling, and help prevent a damaging car-led recovery from the pandemic.

“Reducing road danger through upgrades, introducing 20mph speed limits and making changes to road layouts is central to this.

“I encourage everyone who lives, works or visits the areas within the CS8 trial changes to have their say to ensure that their feedback is taken on board going forward.”

Helen Cansick, TfL's Head of Healthy Streets Delivery, yesterday said:

“We want to make walking and cycling easier and less intimidating on some of London's busier roads and we really value people's opinions on how we can best achieve this.

“The trial changes to the CS8 route in Wandsworth aim to give people a new high-quality, safe cycling route, connecting neighbourhoods in the area to local high streets, Wandsworth Town Centre, central London and beyond.

“London's growing network of high-quality Cycleways will play a vital role in ensuring a sustainable recovery from the pandemic and I'd encourage everyone who lives in, works in and travels through the area to get in touch with their feedback on these important trial changes.”

Green and sustainable

TfL, working with boroughs across London, has learned a huge amount through its rapid delivery of temporary walking and cycling schemes as an urgent response to the pandemic.

TfL will build on these lessons, and those learned from its construction of schemes before the pandemic, to continue quickly delivering the schemes that London will need for a green and sustainable recovery while engaging with a diverse range of stakeholders and communities.

Research shows that walking and cycling benefits people's physical and mental health*, while helping to tackle toxic air** and providing an important boost to high streets and the local economy***.

Making our streets safer for people walking and cycling will save lives, and continued investment in active travel is also central to achieving the Mayor's Vision Zero goal of eliminating all deaths and serious injuries from London's roads by 2041.

Notes to Editors

  • People are invited to submit their feedback on the changes until the 17 November
  • Enabling more people to walk and cycle continues to be at the heart of the Mayor'svision to transform London's streets for the better and to create a healthier, cleaner, fairer and more sustainable city for everyone
  • More than 100km of new or upgraded cycle routes have been delivered or are under construction since the start of the pandemic, as well as hundreds of kilometres of quieter streets, extended pavements, new School Streets and many more junctions made safer
  • The need to create space on London's roads for walking and cycling has become even more important since the coronavirus pandemic began, with record numbers of Londoners walking and cycling to make essential journeys
  • Recent TfL cycle count data shows increased levels of cycling in both inner and outer London last autumn with a seven per cent increase in cycling in inner London and a 22% increase in outer London compared to the previous count in spring 2019. Walking and cycling accounted for nearly half of all journeys during the first lockdown between April and June last year, up from 29% before the pandemic
  • The risk of a damaging car-led recovery from the pandemic have it made it even more important to make it easier to walk and cycle, especially as around 45% of Londoners don't have access to a car, with a high proportion of these from low-income households. Groups worst affected by the impacts of excess motor traffic - including air pollution, discouragement of physical activity, noise and road danger - also tend be the groups less likely to own or use cars
  • The Mayoris determined to ensure that his work with TfL and the boroughs to make walking and cycling safer and easier continues to be at the forefront of London's recovery
  • London's streets account for over 80% of its public space. Turning these streets into places where people want to walk, cycle and take public transport will help communities connect, while allowing Londoners to start enjoying their city again as we recover from the pandemic
  • *Research into the benefits of activity for Londoners' health can be found here – http://content.tfl.gov.uk/healthy-streets-for-london.pdf
  • **Research into the benefits of walking and cycling for air quality can be found here – https://www.walthamforest.gov.uk/sites/default/files/WalthamForest_Kings%20Report_310718.pdf
  • ***Research into the benefits of walking and cycling for the economy can be found here – https://tfl.gov.uk/corporate/publications-and-reports/economic-benefits-of-walking-and-cycling 

 

Channel website: https://tfl.gov.uk/

Original article link: https://tfl.gov.uk/info-for/media/press-releases/2021/june/londoners-encouraged-to-have-their-say-on-major-upgrades-to-cs8-cycle-route

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