Major west London attractions, like Westfield shopping centre, will start benefiting from ‘Boris bikes’ after the Mayor of London announced that the cycle hire scheme would be rolled out westwards this morning.
The Mayor of London’s flagship Barclays Cycle hire scheme celebrates its first birthday today (28 July) and to mark the occasion the Mayor has confirmed that Barclays have agreed to provide another £25 million of sponsorship. The extra funding will help the scheme to expand throughout west and southwest London by the summer of 2013.
Transport for London (TfL) is now preparing plans for a westward expansion of the scheme throughout Hammersmith & Fulham, Kensington & Chelsea, Wandsworth and also Lambeth.
Westfield Shopping Centre is to provide funding that will allow an early taster of the western expansion by extending the cycle hire to the mega-mall by spring 2012. Approximately twelve new docking stations will connect the existing cycle hire zone to Westfield White City and six docking stations will potentially be on the grounds of Westfield London itself.
“Today it is testament to the huge impact of Barclays Cycle Hire and to the rapidly increasing popularity of pedal power in London that I can announce we are now planning to swathe a huge chunk of the west of our city with our beautiful blue bikes.
“My thanks go to Barclays for the benevolence they have demonstrated with their latest bestowal of funds and I am pleased that we can confirm the extension of their sponsorship agreement. By working together we are putting thousands more Londoners on two wheels.
“My thanks also go to the Boroughs who have been champing at the bit for an expansion of this scheme, and to Westfield London for providing an investment that from next year will enable hordes of shoppers to make the journey to their glittering halls by the cleanest, greenest and most enjoyable form of transport available.”
The news is a major boost for Hammersmith & Fulham (H&F) Council’s Get Moving campaign which aims to improve the local transport network and make it easier for people to get around.
In January the council called on Mayor Johnson to extend the popular bike rental scheme westward so that sites like Westfield shopping centre, Fulham Palace, Earls Court, the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith Apollo and Chelsea, Fulham and QPR footballs clubs are all covered.
Cllr Harry Phibbs, Cabinet Member for Community Engagement, says:
"Rolling out Boris bikes westwards is the best transport news the borough has enjoyed since the extension of the congestion charge was scrapped. Pedal power promises to relieve some of the pressure on our congested roads and jam-packed tubes, reduce pollution and give residents another option when choosing how to get around.
“The cycle-hire scheme will also make it easier for visitors to get to our major attractions.”
Cycling projects have been shown to give a return of £3 for every £1 spent – with much of this coming in crucial health benefits, according to the London Cycling Campaign.
John Griffiths, Chairman of H&F cyclists, says:
“Cycling allows you to travel much more quickly through congested roads. It is cheaper than running a car and it creates a wonderful feeling of freedom that you don’t always get on foot.”
Earlier this week it emerged that H&F was the most improved across London for cutting journey times between 10am and 4pm – with them being slashed by almost 18%. The borough was also the best inner London borough during the evening rush hour – with a reduction of almost 9%, according to the research from 2009-2010. Morning rush hour times have been slashed by 13.4%, with the average delay over half a mile having been reduced to 50 seconds.
H&F Council has a strong track record of delivering transport improvements with two new Overground stations on the West London Line, a new Underground station at Wood Lane and a revamped station at
Shepherds Bush delivered since 2007. The council was also at the forefront of the campaign to roll back the western extension of the congestion charge and to ground the plans for a controversial third runway at Heathrow.
A membership key for the Mayor’s cycle hire scheme costs £3 with membership costs at £1 for a 24 hour membership, £5 for seven days and £45 for an annual membership. The first 30 minutes of every journey is free. For more information on how to become a member of Barclays Cycle Hire and advice on how to use the scheme visit: www.tfl.gov.uk/barclayscyclehire
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