London’s Cycleways: Have they been effective?

London’s first Cycle Superhighway was introduced in 2016 and later rebranded as the Cycleway to sound more appealing to the public. Several investments have been made to improve the original blue painted roads but have these new routes been successful?

Cycleway 31 opened on 13th July 2019 and offers a 2 km route between Raynes Park and New Malden. The dedicated walking and cycle path is open 24 hours, with LED lighting providing light for users at night. Whilst it wasn’t overly used during the first year, lockdown has seen a rise in people not only cycling but walking, skateboarding and even travelling on pogo sticks! On a bike, the total journey time is around 10 minutes through parks and cut back trees and bushes compared to 20 minutes on heavily congested and polluted roads. The quiet, well-paved route makes the journey much more enjoyable and encourages locals to use it more often. Philip McEvoy explains how Cycleways has improved cycling in the area, “In London, cycling is often the quickest way to travel. Dedicated cycle routes give Londoners are safe and healthy way to get around. They also allow cyclists to avoid busy roads and dangerous junctions.” Originally, when Boris Johnson introduced blue painted cycle lanes in 2010, they were met with a negative response as many cyclists felt cars and buses were still driving on the segregated section. However, the first Cycle Superhighway was built in 2016 and proved to be a hit as, for the first time, there were routes and paths by the road inaccessible by vehicle. Furthermore, the Cycleways have been hugely successful in lockdown. Investments made by TFL have meant there are over 20 cycleways in London - many of which opened during the pandemic and plenty more are currently being built. Since the start of the pandemic, more than 100 km of new or improved routes have been added in Greater London. This has contributed greatly to the number of cyclists but also efficiency in the city. In fact, London has seen a more than 200% increase in cycle flows from the start of 2020 to the start of 2021. As well as this, in the same time span there has been a 240% growth in cycling at the weekends. On top of using the routes for leisure, the Cycleways were key for travellers making essential journeys in 2020 - walking and cycling made up for nearly half of all journeys in the first lockdown. Studies continue to show the mental health benefits of exercise and these Cycleways will only continue to improve the well-being of Londoners. Even though the Cycleways have only properly started to flourish during lockdown, they are free to use and are a much safer way to explore London by bike than riding on the roads where accidents can occur. And hopefully more local Cycleways will open in the near future to boost numbers of cyclists.