New London cycleway to link Tower Bridge and Greenwich
One of London’s most dangerous roundabouts is to be transformed as part of a new £54m cycleway in south-east London.
Construction on Cycleway 4, which will run between the iconic Tower Bridge and Greenwich, will start next month.
Read more: Sadiq Khan slams Westminster council for pulling out of £80m Oxford Street pedestrianisation plans
The new cycleway will include a new 4km cycle track which will run two ways and be segregated.
There will also be new pedestrian crossings and the Rotherhithe roundabout will be redesigned to reduce accidents.
The cycleway has been funded from TfL’s healthy streets budget, which is geared towards walking and cycling projects in the capital.
Major upgrades to the cycleway include:
- A 4km two-way segregated cycle track on Tooley Street, Jamaica Road, Evelyn Street and Creek Road, which will keep people cycling separated from motor traffic
- Five new signal-controlled pedestrian crossings and upgrades to more than 20 existing pedestrian crossings
- An overhauled Rotherhithe roundabout, which will transform one of London’s most dangerous junctions
- A new eastbound bus gate on the Jamaica Road approach to Rotherhithe roundabout, giving buses priority and easier access into Lower Road
- New and improved street layout at Deptford High Street and Rotherhithe roundabout, including new paving and trees
London mayor Sadiq Khan said: “High-quality segregated cycle routes greatly increase the numbers of people who feel confident cycling on our streets, and with new pedestrian crossings along the route road danger will be substantially reduced for thousands of pedestrians too
“Boroughs like Southwark, Lewisham and Greenwich really understand the huge benefits of investing in high-quality walking and cycling infrastructure. With record investment from TfL we will continue to work with boroughs who share our vision to tackle London’s inactivity crisis, reduce road danger, and get more people out of their cars and into cleaner greener forms of transport.”
The construction of cycleway 4 comes after Kensington and Chelsea councillors vowed to block a new £42m cycle lane through Notting Hill and Holland Park following protests by celebrities including former Top Gear star Jeremy Clarkson.
In a letter to the council today, Khan said he wanted to express his “profound unhappiness at the actions of you and your councillors”.
Read more: Westminster council victorious after court rejects TfL appeal over CS11 cycle superhighway
“By announcing your opposition to the proposals at the public meeting, whilst the consultation period was still open, and before you had even heard from members of the audience, you have made a total mockery of the consultation.”
Last year the mayor clashed with Westminster council over the pedestrianisation of Oxford Street, which has now been scrapped, and over cycle superhighway 1 in north-west London, which the council also successfully blocked.