Discounts on the cost of hiring a “Boris bike” could be given to low-income Londoners under an ambitious plan to boost cycling in London by a third by 2030.
Transport for London wants to increase the number of daily trips by bike from about 1.2m to 1.6m by the end of the decade by expanding the appeal of cycling to a more “diverse” range of Londoners and moving away from focusing on cycle commuters.
TfL’s new cycling action plan – building on a 2018 document – proposes a “significant expansion” in the number of cycle lanes, so that 40 per cent of Londoners live within 400 metres of the cycleway network by 2030.
A significant expansion of the Boris bikes scheme – which has 12,000 bikes and 500 e-bikes - from central London “outwards towards the North and South Circular roads” is proposed.
TfL said it would “also be exploring the possibility of adding concessionary fares” to the Boris bikes scheme “to support the most disadvantaged Londoners”, including job seekers and council house tenants.
The cost of a 30-minute trip on one of the Santander-sponsored TfL hire bikes rose to £1.65 last year, while the annual subscription jumped £30 to £120.
There have been reports of a big drop-off in Boris bike subscriptions – in part because the new charges means that the “auto renewal” system cannot operate and riders have to manually reactivate their membership for another year.
The hire scheme was launched by Boris Johnson in July 2010 in his first term as mayor.
The plan states: “We will explore the feasibility of concessionary fares to provide discounted cycle hires to those most in need.
“This could include discounts for job seekers and/ or council housing residents – as we have done on other modes or on other cycle hire schemes outside London and the UK. We will also explore ways to support more disabled people to access the scheme.”
There will be a three-strand approach to expanding the number of cycle routes: “filling in the gaps” in central London, more orbital routes connecting town centres in inner London, and new networks around town centres in outer London.
The action plan found the biggest barriers to cycling were the fear of road collisions (mentioned by 83 per cent of people thinking of cycling) and cycle theft (75 per cent).
Previously, the target was for a third of Londoners to live within 400m of a “high quality” cycle route by 2025. At present, the figure is about 22 per cent. There are about 210 miles of TfL cycle lanes in London.
TfL wants to tackle the perception of cycling – and especially cycle commuting - as being dominated by white, middle class, younger Londoners by encouraging BAME Londoners, those on low incomes and people with disabilities.
Research by TfL found that people from under-represented groups were open to taking up cycling. Barriers include the need for secure residential bike parking spaces – 42,000 more are proposed by 2030 - and cycle training for children and adults.
Walking and cycling commissioner Will Norman said: “To diversify cycling we must ensure our schemes support a wider range of journeys, including trips to schools, local shops and amenities, rather than focusing solely on the commute.
“We must reach the communities that stand to benefit the most from cycling, including areas of higher deprivation. Our network of cycleways must branch outwards into outer London boroughs, with a focus on orbital routes connecting town centres.”
TfL is spending almost £150m a year on cycling, of which £69 a year is used to fund borough schemes.
But TfL commissioner Andy Lord warned that more Government help was needed to make the plans a reality.
“With no funding certainty beyond March 2024, we urgently need Government to confirm a longer-term funding arrangement, as is already available to other cities in the UK,” he said.
TfL’s annual Travel in London report, which was published last November, reported a 40 per cent increase in cycling since the start of the pandemic.
It said about three per cent of all travel trips in London were made by bike.
Since April last year, TfL and the boroughs have delivered 15 miles of new or upgraded cycleways and there are plans to open at least another 25 miles by next March.
TfL has so far reduced danger at 44 of the 73 most notorious junctions acrossâ¯Londonâ¯as part of its Safer Junctions programme, with work on at a further two locations set to start this year. This week it announced plans to improve safety at the northern end of Battersea bridge.
