London’s commitment to an ambitious, decade-long programme to increase cycling in the capital has “set the standard” the rest of Britain must follow, British Cycling’s policy adviser Chris Boardman said today, ahead of his appearance at the London Assembly Transport Select Committee.

Cycling in London has increased by 173 percent since 2000 and a Transport for London census carried out in 2013 showed that in the morning rush hour up to 64% of vehicles on the road are now bicycles. Bikes make up almost half of all northbound vehicles crossing Waterloo, Blackfriars and London Bridges from 7 to 10am.

Already spending the recommended minimum £10 per head on cycling, improvement works will soon begin at Oval Junction, the first of 33 junctions to be radically reshaped to make them safer for cyclists. The Mayor is also introducing a network of Quietways – designated routes on quiet roads that will provide a convenient network across central London.

The Mayor will also be bringing in the UK’s first Safer Lorries Scheme, which would ban lorries that do not have safety equipment designed specifically to protect cyclists and pedestrians from entering the capital. The ban could be in full force by next summer.

British Cycling’s policy adviser, Chris Boardman, said:

“London has truly set the standard on cycling in doing what the rest of the country could be doing – putting in a long-term, visible commitment with 10 years’ worth of work planned to transform the way people get around. The foundations laid by Ken Livingstone and built upon by Boris Johnson deserve huge praise.

“If we could see other large metropolitan cities choose to truly prioritise cycling, spending at least £10 per head and moving fast to make changes that will have solid health and environmental benefits, we could begin to realise the cycling revolution that this country has been waiting so long for. This sort of change can’t come about through words alone or by doing the minimum we need bold action with ambitious targets to really kick this off.”