Londoners want next Mayor to improve London’s cycling infrastructure

In January, London was named the world’s slowest city for drivers, with traffic moving at just 10 mph on average.

Londoners find driving on the capital’s roads stressful (37%), frustrating (31%) and even anxiety-inducing (23%).

Today new research from London bicycle manufacturer Brompton shows that cyclists in the city get around 40% faster than drivers, with an average speed of 14mph**.

To highlight this benefit of life on two wheels, Brompton has taken to the streets of London and placed ‘average speed’ signs in iconic locations including Parliament, Victoria Embankment and Green Park.

Will Butler-Adams OBE, CEO of Brompton said, “Anyone who regularly drives in London will know what a miserable experience it can be. The reality is, cities have been designed around cars, which simply does not make sense. Prioritising active travel is the solution for modern, happier cities, providing freedom to the people who live in them.”

“Bikes take up much less space, are fun, get you fit, reduce pollution and – who’d have thought it – are actually faster than crawling through traffic in a two-tonne metal box.”

Ahead of the city’s upcoming mayoral election, and in celebration of Earth Day, Brompton is calling on the next Mayor of London to continue to deliver improvements to London’s cycling infrastructure.

The Brompton study found that while 75% of Londoners say that the city has improved for cyclists over the last 10 years, 70% agree that the next Mayor of London needs to continue to deliver improvements in London’s cycling infrastructure.

Respondents want to see City Hall advocate for cyclists by  increasing the quality of the road surfaces by filling in potholes (55%), adding more cycle lanes (36%) and importantly, more segregated bicycle lanes (36%).

Improving the quality of the capital’s air is also considered a priority for the upcoming Mayor by 78% of Londoners.

Safety remains the lead concern of those who do not cycle (54%). Looking ahead to the next generation of cyclists, 34% of parents agree they wouldn’t feel comfortable teaching their children to cycle on London’s roads in their current state, due to high levels of traffic (73%) and lack of cycling infrastructure (52%).

Brompton is hopeful that whoever wins the upcoming Mayoral Election will make the capital a global leader in cycling infrastructure, with 71% of Londoners agreeing more should be done to encourage people to cycle in cities, listing the benefits such as:

• Fitness and exercise (60%)
• Saving money (48%)
• Environmental benefits (36%)
• Being outdoors (36%)

Will Butler-Adams OBE, CEO of Brompton added, “The majority of people want the next mayor to do more when it comes to cycling. London has become so  much more cycling-friendly over the last decade but there is still so much to do when it comes to giving more people the confidence to take to the roads on two wheels.”

“With the right transport and planning strategy from City Hall, we could create “Amsterdam-On-Thames” where more people feel empowered to make more journeys by bike”.

Brompton is encouraging people to give life in the saddle a go by offering free bike hire on polling day – May 2nd. Head to bromptonhire.com and use the code VOTEBIKE.