Newham shortlisted in London Mayor’s ‘mini-Holland’ plan

The borough could win a share of £100 million if it wins a competition run by the London Mayor to introduce cycling improvements.

The borough is among eight chosen to go through to the final stage of the competition to choose a small number of local authorities for the London Mayor’s ‘mini-Holland’ programme.

The three or four winners, who will be announced early next year, will share £100 million to be invested in cycling improvements.

Newham’s proposals include a redesign of Stratford town centre, removing the gyratory, and new off-road Superhighway routes. They are among a variety of ideas short listed for the Mayor’s £100 million ‘mini-Holland’ funding.

Boris Johnson, said: ‘It’s fantastic that so many boroughs have embraced the idea of going Dutch. We’ve seen some really creative ideas – from a floating bicycle boardwalk to cycling super hubs – and they’ve all got huge potential to revolutionise how we get around on two wheels.’

TfL and the Mayor’s Cycling Commissioner for London, Andrew Gilligan, will now work with the short listed boroughs to draw up more detailed plans. These will then be assessed for their deliverability and the benefits they add for cycling. Each finalist’s political commitment and delivery capacity will also be examined.

Andrew Gilligan said: “Councils across outer London have stepped up to the plate and we are thrilled with how many want to redesign their town centres around cycling. There is enough money available to deliver dramatic change in the chosen boroughs, and make them places that suburbs and towns all over Britain will want to copy.”

The mini-Holland programme aims to move significant numbers of suburban car journeys, which are often short and eminently cycleable, on to the bike.