Campaigners called for the experimental Bank Junction safety scheme to become permanent as the London Assembly transport committee demanded Sadiq Khan tighten definitions of targets in his transport strategy.
The committee said that while the number of daily cycling trips in London has more than doubled since 2000, cycling still accounts for only 2% of all journeys, compared to 45% in Copenhagen and 36% in Amsterdam.
The committee urged the Mayor of London to apply pressure on boroughs to deliver planned cycling infrastructure quicker in order to combat the scattered and incomplete network of cycling routes.
Transport for London estimates almost eight million daily journeys currently made by motorised modes in the Capital could be cycled instead.
A spokesperson for the Mayor of London stressed that while the overall rates may be low, the number of cycling journeys is increasing, with rates rising 8.8% in recent years.
He added that they expect these number to increase further as consultations have just been completed on two new cycle superhighways which will add 6km of new cycle tracks to the Capital’s roads.
Locally the City of London Corporation has taken its own steps to get more people in the saddle.
In May 2017 the authority introduced the Bank on Safety scheme, which saw the closure of Bank Junction to all but buses, cyclists and pedestrians during weekday peak hours.
Fran Graham from the London Cycling Campaign said the scheme has made cycling in the junction much safer, while encouraging both cyclists and pedestrians to visit the area more frequently.
“We’ve seen tremendous improvements, so we’re pushing for the trial scheme to stay.
“If Bank Junction remained closed to motorised vehicles, that would open up so many new possibilities for use of the space – such as putting up benches, planting trees, or allowing businesses to use the space for outdoor tables – making the junction a much nicer place for everyon
