Merton is awaiting the outcome of its bid for funding from Transport for London for a ‘mini-holland‘ scheme, to improve cycling routes and facilities in the borough.

These should be announced by the Mayor of London in mid Feb 2014. The funding is supposed to provide approximately three outer London boroughs with the funds to radically improve local cycling conditions.

The Merton bid is being co-ordinated by Labour’s Cllr Andrew Judge. He is proposing a range of interventions, focusing on a radical change to driving – and hence cycling routes – through Wimbledon town centre. Essentially, the Broadway would become a cycling (and bus) route, with most traffic diverted via Hartfield Road.

While certainly radical, we are concerned that this type of proposal will not ultimately be acceptable to many road users (car drivers, pedestrians or cyclists) in Wimbledon. More importantly, we would prefer a borough-wide set of interventions, dramatically improving the network of useful and effective cycle routes across the borough as well as improving safety for cyclists as well as pedestrians.

If the bid is not successful, Merton must nevertheless lay out a longer term strategy for improving cycling conditions across the borough as well as cycle/ pedestrian/ motorist safety.

The loss of the mini-holland bid should not be seen as an opportunity to do nothing!