The Mayor and Transport for London has set out plans for the extension of the hugely successful Barclays Cycle Hire scheme to southwest London and the introduction of additional docking stations in busy areas.
The expansion will build on the popularity of Barclays Cycle Hire and improve the availability of bicycles and docking points. Since the launch of the scheme there have already been 15 million hires, and since the east London extension earlier this year the number of average weekday hires has increased by 50 per cent from 20,000 to 30,000 per day.
The plans have been welcomed by British Cycling, who earlier this week were present for a meeting of the London Assembly devoted to the Transport Committee’s ongoing investigation into cycling in London.
“British Cycling is very pleased to see further investment in cycling in London with the expansion of the Barclays Cycle Hire Scheme,” said Martin Gibbs, British Cycling policy and legal affairs director.
Barclays Cycle Hire scheme explansion plans
- Launching late next year, with all docking stations expected to be in by spring 2014
- Over 2,000 new bicycles and around 5,000 new docking points, almost half of which will be south of the Thames
- Over 15 million hires since the launch of the scheme
“The cycle hire scheme is a very strong, visible message that London wants people to cycle and is a signal that cycling is a normal everyday activity. Bringing the scheme westwards is great news for those living in west London and for all of us who want to encourage more people to cycle more often.”
The Mayor of London has asked TfL to prepare plans for a westward expansion of the scheme in the boroughs of Wandsworth, Hammersmith & Fulham, Lambeth and Kensington & Chelsea last year. Since then TfL has been working with the boroughs to identify over 200 suitable locations for docking stations and to develop the design and layout of the proposed expanded area.
The next stage will be public information sessions about the location of the docking points within the expansion area.
Mayor of London, Boris Johnson said: “Every Londoner should be able to take advantage of our hugely popular and iconic Barclays Cycle Hire scheme which has already brought untold benefits to London’s commuters, businesses and visitors alike.
"Earlier this year we took the blue bikes eastwards towards Canary Wharf with enormous success, and this further expansion will bring more than two thousand new docking points south of the river as well as greatly enhancing the rest of the network.”
The announcement confirms the timetable for the extension which will launch late next year. Public information sessions will begin in October 2012, and all docking stations are expected to be in by spring 2014.
The extension to the west and the introduction of new docking stations within the existing area will increase the number of bicycles by 2,400 to around 11,000 and will deliver an additional 250,000-300,000 Barclays Cycle Hire journeys each month.
