Cycle wars rage on after Sadiq Khan calls for lanes to be reinstated
SADIQ KHAN today called for the cycle lanes in Kensington High Street to be reinstated after a poll of residents found almost two to one in favour.
The Mayor’s intervention is the latest twist in Transport for London’s cycle wars dispute with Kensington and Chelsea council, which ripped out the segregated lanes in December just seven weeks after they were completed. The lanes, which used plastic wands to allocate space for safe cycling, had been installed with £320,000 of public money.
City Hall said today that the research, by ICM Unlimited and involving 1,000 residents, found 56 per cent supported the lanes and 30 per cent were opposed.
More than 4,000 cyclists a day were counted after the lanes were installed — more than double normal levels. The Tory council removed the lanes in the face of protests from borough teachers and pupils after receiving 322 complaints from residents and two business organisations.
Mr Khan said: “The ripping out of the new cycle lanes last year was not just an unacceptable waste of money, but went against what everyone could see: that the safe space for cycling on Kensington High Street was working.
Cycling numbers were up, bus journey times down, yet the council were swayed by a few loud voices committed to the status quo.”
TFL also said that the street was one of the worst in the borough for road danger, with 15 cyclists and pedestrians having been killed or seriously injured in three years.
The council is reviewing its decision at a meeting on March 17.