With the clocks going forward this weekend, Londoners are being encouraged to join the Capital's cycling revolution, as Transport for London (TfL) announces a record investment of £2.8m in cycling training programmes.

The Tour de France is set to start in London in July. This year will be the biggest year yet for cycling in the Capital - and aspiring and regular riders alike are being encouraged to give adult cycle training a try.

Free or subsidised adult cycle training, funded by TfL, is available through many of London's borough councils. Training sessions are individually tailored to each person's needs, and teach them to deal with busy traffic conditions, as well as introducing them to local cycle routes on quieter roads.

Peter McBride, Head of Cycling, Walking and Accessibility at TfL, said: "Lots of people know that children can get cycle training, but aren't aware that it's something that's also widely available to adults.

"Cycling should be an activity that is open to all Londoners, but we understand that many people lack the confidence or skills to get on their bikes and cycle in an urban environment.

"By funding cycle training sessions for people of all ages and abilities, we hope that everyone who wants to cycle in London will be able to join the many thousands of people who already enjoy all the benefits that cycling in the Capital brings."

The Mayor's Green Transport Advisor, Jenny Jones, said: "This big increase in funding for cycle training will enable many more children and their parents to gain confidence on their bikes and on the roads, which modern cycle training can bring.

"We want to ensure that any primary school child in London who wants cycle training will now get it.

"We also want to encourage the children's parents to take up cycling as well, so that whole families cycle to school and to other local venues on a regular basis."

People interested in cycle training should contact their local council for more details.

  • TfL's web site has information and contact details on cycle training provision in London's borough councils, and on private cycling trainers - http://www.tfl.gov.uk/cycletraining
  • London has seen a dramatic rise in the number of people cycling, with a 72 per cent increase in cycle journeys on the capital's major roads since 2000
  • It is estimated that there are now approximately 450,000 cycle journeys a day across London as a whole
  • Investment in cycling rose from £5.5m in 2000 to £24m in 2006/07. TfL is investing this money in cycling infrastructure, training, promotion and education
  • The number of cyclists killed or seriously injured has fallen by 30 per cent since the mid to late 1990s (compared with the Government baselines figures from the mid to late 1990s). Overall collisions involving cyclists have fallen by 34 per cent
  • Before TfL was established in 2000, there was no centrally supported cycle training.  In 2001, the Cycling Centre of Excellence (CCE) allocated £600,000 of the Borough Spending Plan funding to borough cycle training initiatives starting in 2002/03. CCE has continued to support a rolling programme (now running at over £2.8m annually), which builds on developments in curriculum, quality control and partnership working to ensure that the training provided meets London's needs.  The result, Bikeability, (cycling proficiency for the 21st century) will be launched in Camden in April 2007
  • TfL is working closely with the London boroughs, schools and cycling groups to encourage parents to see for themselves what cycle training can do for their children and for the wider community