The haulage industry welcomed a scheme to help cyclists and other vulnerable road users avoid some of London’s major traffic routes, which opened between Greenwich and London this week.

London’s Quietway route is a signposted route which passes through four London boroughs - Lambeth, Southwark, Lewisham and the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It includes more than 2km of traffic-free paths for cyclists linking Greenwich and Waterloo via  backstreet roads.

Marked with purple-branded signage, Quietway 1 connects with other cycling routes in the area including the North-South Cycle Superhighway (CS6) at Webber Street and Cycle Superhighway 7 (CS7) at Great Suffolk Street.

The route has been delivered by TfL, the local boroughs and cycling and walking charity Sustrans. It is the first Quietway route to be delivered with six additional routes due to be complete by spring next year.

RHA national policy director Jack Semple said the scheme was long overdue: “It is exactly in line with what we have been calling for, for some years.

"RHA has always advocated ways to take cyclists off major routes in London and create safe spaces for them that also minimise their impact on vehicles using these routes, particularly given the volume of cyclists we anticipate will be on London’s roads in the future, so it is very welcome," he added.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said the scheme lays the foundations for a larger cycling network across London: “It is important that we make it safer and easier for Londoners to cycle across our city and we want the first of the Quietways to make a significant contribution towards that aim," he added.

Topics