Mayor confirms £4.2m for local transport improvements in Brent

The Mayor of London today confirmed £4.2m for Brent to spend on local transport improvements during 2010/11, including £622,000 for essential road maintenance and £375,000 for major schemes.

Brent has been developing proposals for a number of schemes that it will be financing with the funding package, including:

• £282,000 improvements to the Willesden Green town centre corridor aimed at improving the route for pedestrians with measures to simplify the streetscape and upgrade crossings as well as smooth traffic flow, reduce collisions and support greener forms of travel
• £300,000 for improvements to the Harrow Road corridor to reduce the number of collisions, which currently average 17 each year
• £10,000 for a number of improvements to Forty Lane, Bridge Road and Empire Way, a key corridor for Wembley which experiences high levels of congestion.  Improvements will smooth traffic flow, reduce collisions, improve the public realm and support the use of electric vehicles
• £60,000 for cycle training measures to encourage active travel and reduce carbon dioxide emissions
• £25,000 for a school buses escort programme where school staff patrol buses, bus stops and interchange areas for 90 minutes after the school day to reduce antisocial behaviour among schoolchildren

Mayor of London, Boris Johnson said: 'Even in these tough economic times I am committed to providing this funding to all of London's boroughs.

'The investment means that across the Capital, town centres and public spaces are being overhauled, cycling and walking facilities are being improved, and roads are being made safer.

'We have cut red tape to make it easier for borough councils to choose the local transport projects that benefit their residents the most, simplifying the funding system and working together to give local people the improvements they want.

Fairer funding formulas

'This time we're also giving an extra focus to cycling - helping to provide the training, cycle parking, and maintenance knowhow to support the introduction of the first two Cycle Superhighways next year.'

Funding for local schemes is allocated each year by Transport for London (TfL).  

The Mayor has simplified the system - reducing the number of funding streams from 23 to five, and introducing fairer funding formulas where needed. 

London's Transport Commissioner, Peter Hendy said: 'Brent has identified a range of small and large scale projects that will make a real difference to local people by improving town centres and public spaces, reducing the number of collisions on our roads, improving the environment and promoting greener forms of travel. 

'Brent also has the flexibility to move certain funding between projects if, during the course of the year, they find more or less funding is needed for individual schemes.'

Notes to editors:

• Each borough produces a Local Implementation Plan (LIP) to demonstrate how they plan to implement the Mayor's Transport Strategy locally. While TfL allocated funding for individual schemes, the LIP and delivery of individual projects is the responsibility of each borough
• In addition to the usual borough allocation, TfL has included £100,000 for each of the boroughs to spend locally on transport as they choose
• Below is a table with a breakdown of Local Implementation Plan funding for Brent: