Source: J Mark Dodds/ flickr
A number of top London-based architects, including Richard Rogers, Patrik Schumacher and Terry Farrell, have written to London’s Mayor Boris Johnson in support of the proposed new Cycle Superhighways. The Mayor revealed plans last month for £65 million of cycle routes, dubbed ‘crossrail for cyclists’.
Cycling campaign charity Sustrans is leading the campaign of support, with the recent letter to the mayor calling the proposed cycle routes ‘visionary’ and ‘vital for providing safe and direct passage through the capital’.
‘Through these projects, London can begin to become a city fit for the future – and cycling an everyday way for Londoners to travel.’
The two proposed routes, currently out to consultation, have been designed to work as a continuous segregated cycle lane across some of the busiest parts of the capital, with the east-west route running for 18 miles across the middle of central London and with a shorter north-south route running for three miles from Elephant and Castle in the south to King’s Cross. The plans also include changes to traffic layouts at Blackfriars Bridge, Lancaster Gate and Parliament Square, as well as plans to introduce a dedicated cycle lane on the Westway, which are still to be finalised.
As support for this superhighways grows, a team of architects has also revealed plans for a £600 million floating cycle path. Dubbed the ‘Thames Deckway’, designed to complement the proposed cycle superhighway plans and will stretch 12 miles from Battersea to Canary Wharf.
The full letter
Dear Mr Johnson, Mayor of London
We, the undersigned, write to you to express our strong support for the new and upgraded Cycle Superhighways.
The schemes will enable far more people to choose to cycle to work, to the shops or to the capital’s renowned cultural centres, and as growing numbers take to their bikes, it is vital to provide them with truly safe and direct passage through the capital.
But these visionary schemes will bring benefits to all Londoners. We welcome the improvements to help those on foot, in making the routes more pleasant places to walk with streets easier to cross and greater separation from traffic.
Through these projects, London can begin to become a city fit for the future – and cycling an everyday way for Londoners to travel.
Yours Sincerely,
Malcolm Shepherd, CEO, Sustrans
Richard Rogers
Terry Farrell, CBE
Patrick Schumacher, Director, Zaha Hadid Architects
Alan Baxter, CBE
Joylon Brewis, CEO, Grimshaw Architects
Nick Searl, Partner, Argent LLP
Cynthia Barlow, OBE, Chair, Road Peace London
Matthew Carmona, Professor of Urban Design and Planning, UCL Bartlett
Peter Murray, Chair, New London Architecture
Peter Drummond, South Region Chair, BDP