Cycle Superhighways were introduced too quickly in London and some are not up to scratch, the Mayor’s cycling commissioner Andrew Gilligan has admitted. He told a London Assembly transport committee hearing yesterday that all existing Superhighways will be upgraded by 2016.

Up to 70% of the routes could become segregated or ‘part segregated’ from motorised traffic and all major junctions on the Superhighway routes, he promised, will be redesigned to improve cyclist safety.

“Cycle Superhighways are not always in the right place and where that is the case we will be moving them,” he said. “Frankly some of roads (designated as Superhighways) are completely unsuitable.

“I am determined not to repeat mistakes of the past in the new programme,” Mr Gilligan continued. “Just painting a blue line on the road is not going to be the model in future.”

Cycle Superhighway 2 in east London is, he added, an “exceptionally complicated road” used by nearly as many buses every day as cyclists. The public will be consulted on three options for redesigning the route; the most ambitious of which is a segregated cycle track down the centre of major highways along the route.

Next week, the Mayor is to unveil a map showing a new cycle ‘grid’ in central London incorporating Cycle Superhighways and a network of ‘Quietways’ making use of roads with low traffic levels. The first four or five Quietways are due to open next year. Two Quietways are to broadly follow the route of the Circle and Victoria underground lines.

Charlie Lloyd of the London Cycling Campaign told the committee: “We welcome development of Cycle Superhighway routes off of main roads.”

(Photo: TfL)

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