Mayor announces £5m for transport improvements in Bromley

The £5m funding includes £581,000 for more cycle lanes and better facilities for cyclists in Bromley as part of the London Cycle Network+, £395,000 for 20mph zones to be introduced in Bromley including Goodington Lane, £222,000 for the carriageway between Avalon Road and Spur Road to be resurfaced and £95,000 to build a footpath on both sides of Elmstead Woods Station.

The funding is part of the record-breaking five-year £792m programme for local transport schemes included in the Transport for London (TfL) £10bn Investment Programme.

Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, said: "This new £5m investment in local transport schemes will make the daily journeys of people in Bromley safer, greener and more accessible, whether they are travelling by public transport, by car, on foot or by bike.

"Thanks to extra investment in local transport schemes, cycling has increased by 83 per cent since 2000 and more than 1,600 school travel plans have been approved which encourage and enable more children and their parents to walk to school."

Local transport improvements

London's Transport Commissioner, Peter Hendy, said: "This £5m investment will go towards directly improving transport for people in Bromley.

"Local people feel strongly about transport in their area and this funding will make a real difference to their experience each day.  

"The investment will fund both large and small projects that will improve bus journeys and access to public transport, reduce congestion, improve the environment and promote a healthier lifestyle.

"This funding is an important part of our wider programme of spending in the boroughs to make improvements to local transport."

Projects funded in Bromley for 2008/09 include:

• £581,000 for the London Cycle Network+
• £395,000 allocated for 20mph zones in the Goodington Lane area on Goodington Lane and Charterhouse Road
• £222,000 to resurface the carriageway between Avalon Road and Spur Road. This work on the busy A224 Court Road in Orpington will improve the environment for road users and pedestrians
• £95,000 to improve pedestrian facilities and safety near Elmstead Woods Station. The creation of two pedestrian islands, a footpath on both the residential side of the station and the golf course side will make crossing the road safer and more convenient
• £15,000 for the "World at Your Feet" project for schools with an approved school travel plan. Schools in Bromley are linked with similar schools in the United States of America through a partnership scheme with the Department of Health in California. Pupils will speak to each other using a webcam and video link ups will allow pupils to discuss their school journeys and the green travel initiatives their school takes part in
• In addition to the £5m, Bromley, as leader of the SELTRANS Partnership, will be coordinating £826,000 of improvements to station access across South East London that complement local rail services. Potential station schemes in this partnership include St Mary Cray in the London Borough of Bromley, Brockley in the London Borough of Lewisham and Streatham Common in the London Borough of Lambeth. Works would be carried out according to need but could include tactile paving and dropped kerbs at crossings and improved access at bus stops. Other measures to increase personal security and safety might involve CCTV or better lighting
  

Notes for editors:

• Each year the borough prepares a Local Implementation Plan to demonstrate how they propose to implement the Mayor's Transport Strategy locally. While TfL awards funding for individual schemes, project delivery is the responsibility of the borough
• Priorities for the Local Implementation Plans include:
  • Improving road safety
  • Improving bus journey times and reliability
  • Relieving traffic congestion and improving journey time reliability
  • Improving the working of parking and loading arrangements
  • Improving accessibility for all on the transport network
  • Encouraging walking and cycling
  • Bringing transport infrastructure into a good state of repair
• Below is an allocation breakdown of Local Implementation funding for Bromley for 2008/09:

Principal road renewals - £868,000
Local safety schemes - £725,000
20mph zones - £395,000
Education, training and publicity - £60,000
Walking - £183,000
Cycling - £180,000
London Cycle Network+ - £581,000
Bus stop accessibility - £125,000
Bus priority - £1,189,000
School Travel Plans - £455,000
Work travel plans - £30,000
Travel awareness - £20,000
Controlled parking zones - £60,000
Local area accessibility - £120,000
Total - £4,991,000

• A School Travel Plan is a package of measures, tailored to the needs of individual schools to deliver alternative transport methods for the school run. The aim of a school travel plan is to reduce single occupancy car journeys to school, reduce congestion and increase safety around schools
• The London Cycle Network+ is funded by TfL. It will provide 900km of safer, faster cycle routes through the Capital. It's due to be finished by 2010 and is one of TfL's our major investments