HedgehogCycling.co.uk

Online cycling magazine

Increase in cyclists in central London

4th February 2016

The number of cyclists entering central London during rush hour tripled between 2000 and 2014, increasing from 12,000 to 36,000. In the same period, the number of cars fell from 137,000 to 64,000. The information comes from Transport for London's Travel Report 8.

The report's overview says: 'Since 2000, London has achieved a net shift in mode share...of 11 per cent away from private transport, principally the car, towards public transport, walking, and cycling...' It also notes that 'Cycling levels increased by 10.3 per cent between 2013 and 2014.' The number of cycle journey stages per day in London in 2014 was 645,000. 

Cycling accounted for just 2% of journeys in 2014 in London as a whole, but it is specifically during rush hour in central London that is has expanded rapidly.

There were 10.1 million Barclays cycle hires in the year to March 2015, compared with 8.2 million the previous year.

Looking to the future, TfL expects cycling to grow strongly, and '...help mitigate some of the increase in public transport demand and crowding.'

Following the publication of the TfL report, the BBC's video report has interviews with cyclists on the capital's new Cycle Superhighways. One interviewee says, 'they've done a good job, actually, it's a lot safer than it used to be.'

Steve McNamara, of the LTDA, on behalf of black cab drivers, told the BBC, 'What we need is a proper planned cycle route that takes cyclists away from these roads.' Many people will feel that McNamara is not interested in cycling or cyclists' safety, and his views are not valuable; and that this comment amounts to little more than wishful thinking - that cyclists could be removed to a magical, non-existent space, where McNamara wouldn't ever have to see them.

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