Lewisham look to upgrade 21 streets and active travel routes in borough
Lewisham Council have launched a new new active travel strategy and are seeking feedback.
Lewisham Council have produced a report for an Active Travel Strategy which they claim is “a long-term plan to make walking, wheeling, scooting, and cycling the first choice for everyday travel. By improving roads, travel infrastructure and public spaces, we can create a healthier, safer, and more sustainable borough.”
A total of 36 corridors have been listed in terms of priority. The bottom 15 have been dropped with 21 remaining.
A number of “quick wins” are also listed.
Funding
The overall project will last up to ten years and follows the current “Sustainable Streets” programme with funding from four main sources.
• TfL – either directly or through the LIP (Local Implementation Plan) annual funding allocation given to all London boroughs.
• Section 106 agreements – income from new developments which according to this report is “focused on site specific mitigation of the impacts of developments”.
Not sure why they only mention “site specific” as it’s always been possible to pool resources from a number of sites and does not have to be in the immediate vicinity of a project. This is a common mistake Greenwich also make.
See Southwark Council for many examples of how they pool resources from a number of developments for a specific project.
• Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) – a charge on development.
Lewisham havn’t done a great job with obtaining revenue since 2015 by not revising CIL rates since adoption after commencing consultation in 2018. When they finally do change, rates should be somewhat higher bringing millions in additional revenue.
• Active Travel Fund – a “dedicated pool of financial resources, which the Council is exploring”. Perhaps via parking revenue or fines for traffic offences, with income ringfenced to transport.
The report states that according to the recent census “Lewisham as a whole has 47.7% of households who do not have access to a car or van. This is higher than the figure for England and Wales (23.5%) and for London as whole (42.1%)”.
With further car-free developments on the way that’s likely to increase.
A survey to fill in on the plan can be seen here
All that Lewisham council and TFL have done is to cause congestion and polution with their war on motorists. I have lived in Inchmery Road Catford for 25 years and now as i am getting old they tell me i need to walk cycle and scoot. They now intend to place a CPZ wherever they can, reduce parking and force us to pay for the privilege. Elected individuals are placed in power to do what their constituents want, not come up with unnecessary and unwanted policies.
I am all for making our streets safer for all and improving peoples health and well being. Scooters, wheelies etc are fine if you are younger and fit and use them properly obeying the rules of the road. Being considerate to pedestrians and other road users.
A lot of people still need to rely on their cars to get about and to work etc including the disabled.
There has been no real public transport improvements in Lewisham Borough for years. Especially when it comes to local bus services. In real terms we have seen cuts to bus services with frequencies reduced some routes curtailed and no longer running in to the heart of Central London like route 53 from Plumstead which also serves the Deptford/New Cross area of the Borough of Lewisham and 171 from Bellingham both have seen their routes cut back over the years.
So we need to wotk together to improve our streets make them safer for everyone and provide real alternatives if they want to see a reduction in car use.
Superloop are not the only answer has most bus routes are made locally and need to stop where people live and work.
Hi, I am a veteran of the Lewisham borough, although I was born in the old Greenwich. I loved and use to admire Deptford which I grew up in from the age of birth. But I must say as I see it and my strong opinion, is that the whole of south London’s road are nothing more than a money making scheme and how best to get revenue from the poor and drivers. The whole of the road system is mess and getting worse. For the amount of car and vehicles that use it’s roads in comparison to the cyclist. This was all a bad idea and just a bottleneck system that is causing more harm for people’s health than making it a safer environment. The roads all need to be reopened and have a system where people on cycles and pedestrians have less time being close or mixing with vehicles that spend most times in traffic, letting more fumes being inhaled. No one can tell me all what has been done on the roads in london works and is benefiting local businesses and traders with regards logistics and loads etc. all the councils and tfl are doing is looking at revenue and not the sustainability of regular businesses and the human costs and pressure to the nhs with the health issues arising from the fumes in and around all the roads. The rubber and new pollution (platinum particles) that is now the case on our roads are and will have a devastating effect our children and future generation. This will in turn cost the nhs and tax payers more in the future. I have written to tfl years ago about ideas I have had in my head for over 4 decades for a new and way advance for traffic and all computers and would bring much more revenue to all boroughs of london and if implemented and strategised properly will and can be sold as a model to all cities across the uk and the world in fact. But I think their are hidden ulterior motives on how the roads are at present being designed or redesigned. There must be others who already are benefitting financially and behind closed doors, have been sold out to a business or someone that has a contract to do the mess of london and our roads.
Everyone can see that the time it takes to navigate through the streets of london is not only time consuming and not working, but also creating a backlog of problems to business and working people who have to drive to get to work, due to the insanely high public transport and or disabilities that have no real design on wheel chairs and mobility scooters. That should be a top priority over the cyclist and all vehicles. I am willing to discuss this idea but not without a NDA and someone to talk about this with a mindful regard for genuine chain for the public and the future of our roads and tax payers resources. I will just keep on watching how london is making the whole world and all the tourist who come to the city. Look at us Londoners, as backwards and lacking in ingenuity and how to make a city work it’s people and government. I have been walking around london from the days of the canals that used to be in New Cross, the New Cross baths, washrooms in Clyde street, old moonshot and childeric school. Christopher Marlowe school, old Albany, Deptford funfairs, the old New Cross hospital, Greenwich hospital, millers hospital, the marquis was a thoroughfare to the other side of Bermondsey and Rotherhithe and Surrey docks was the name of now known Surrey Quays. When Lewisham had two cinemas (the Odean, and studio 6&7). And much much more. All I have seen is it get worse year by year and deprivation for those who grew and lived their lives paying taxing for outsiders to come and dictate the mess it is now in. The whole world knows that london and in particular south london roads is a farce and not working. And is unacceptable in the 21st century with all the great tech available to us all. When will someone have the integrity and initiative to at least listen to what I have to put forward and give me what is due to me. If it makes me the richest man on the planet, or not. I am a man that has lived london for over 5 decades and the issues with me and how I see that I have not even had any input into a city that I always called the “Great Estate”, (please do not copy). As now deteriorated into the “great state”. What a pity that so much history and such a wonderful city has been dismantled into chaos and disrepair to just fill a few pockets and local authorities. Instead of making it a place that thrives of good health and ingenuity for future generations to love and live healthily. Also with more sleep for those workers who are helping to build its future, with better roads and and ease of commuting. Sad and disappointing to see how after so many years me being loving and living here, it would be like this. What a mess and a bad bag of decisions.
Nice that you are making it safe to cross but i think you have made it worse as not the traffice does not flow any more and is starting to back up traffic, mainly in Deptford Broadway. as cyclist it is a joke on how you put a cycle highway in when it was not needed. the amount of people using it is was so small that the money would of been better spent elsewhere. to use the highway i will have to jump across lanes of traffic which makes it dangerous for cyclist.
should of remove all cycle highways and just have a painted area for bike to save money for better project for young people
@Dean: ‘… remove all cycle highways and just have a painted area …’. Cyclysts have to be separated from psycho drivers and the inattentive. This unwillingness of drivers to share the road space, including with pedestrians, is self-centred.
Good on Lewisham, they need to pull their finger out and make the roads work for everyone, not just the privileged richer half of residents that can afford a car.
Surplus parking revenue monies can be spent on almost any transport related projects yet for the last x years the council decided to send it all to London Councils to help fund concessionary fares. Now it has been decided some cpz income can be spent on active travel schemes in areas that have said they want a cpz via Sustainable Streets programme. Since 2023 I have been asking if that change of policy has been minuted/formally approved with no response. Going through thru councils formal complaints procedures has not worked, no response either. We are talking about around £4 million. Neither Councillors or officers are interested.
Another example of Lewisham being less than transparent is the annual parking reports that they should publish. Last one was 2022/23 so the latest 2 are yet to be published.
https://lewisham.gov.uk/myservices/parking/parking-reports-and-policies
If you ask a FOI you get a rejection as the report is due to be published.
I asked about using parking revenue surplus at tonight’s online consultation meeting, strangely it wasn’t one of the questions taken. 4 people on the call.
Good news, although they should be even bolder than this and aim to implement a fully comprehensive, linked-up cycling network within the borough. London’s cycling infrastructure is still decades behind most of Europe.