Cycling campaigners in the east London borough of Havering have condemned the local authority’s decision to scrap a new safe cycling scheme in an area where two people were killed while riding their bikes in separate collisions with motorists in 2021.
The Marsh Way Active Travel Scheme would have seen the installation of a continuous and safe walking and cycling route connecting the A1306 in Rainham with nearby housing developments, industrial estates, the proposed Beam Park railway station, and pre-existing bike paths.
Marsh Way, which leads south from National Cycle route 13 along the A1306, is a busy, unprotected two-lane road connecting the A13 trunk road and an industrial estate, which includes the head office of the NELFT NHS Foundation Trust and Rainham’s Centre for Engineering and Manufacturing Excellence (CEME). Cyclists looking to access the industrial estate must do so via Marh Way.
Calls for a protected cycling route connecting to pre-existing infrastructure in the area were first made in 2020 by NHS workers seeking a safer way to travel by bike to the CEME campus. These calls intensified in January 2021 following the deaths of two cyclists in the space of a week following collisions with lorry drivers on Marsh Way.
Plans were drawn up for a two-way protected cycle track connecting Marsh Way and the A13 to the south, where a shared-use walking and cycling route would continue to the industrial estates and CEME campus.
A public consultation on the scheme was held in March 2025 by Havering Borough Council’s previous administration, led by the Havering Residents Association, who said the aim of the project was to “offer a practical alternative to car travel, making it easier for people to commute sustainably”, while also leading to “increased safety for cyclists and a reduction in road traffic collisions involving cyclists”.
“Marsh Way is a key route linking major housing and employment regeneration areas in Rainham,” the local authority said at the time.
“However, the road is currently busy and lacks dedicated cycling infrastructure, making it challenging for cyclists, pedestrians, and drivers to share the space safely. Businesses in the London Riverside Business Improvement District have also reported difficulties in attracting and retaining staff due to limited travel options beyond car use.”
The council secured funding for the £1.1m scheme entirely from Transport for London and the Thames Gateway Project.
However, it was reported this week that the local authority, now under the control of Reform UK, has decided to scrap the active travel project, despite the council not being required to spend a penny of its own money installing the proposed cycle lanes.
road.cc has contacted Havering Council requesting the reasons behind the decision, which are currently unclear, but is yet to receive a response.
The Reform-led council’s decision to scrap the scheme has been met with confusion and anger by cyclists, with local campaign group Havering Cyclists describing the move as a “shocking waste”.
“The previous council administration had lined up £1.1m of external funding to open up a safe cycling route that would hopefully have prevented further cyclist deaths on Marsh Way and the new administration have just cancelled it. What a shocking waste!” the group said on social media.
Chartered civil engineer and sustainable mobility design expert Mark Philpotts, known on social media as the Ranty Highwayman, was even more forthright, writing: “The Refukers running Havering council have decided there’s not enough dead people at Marsh Way in Rainham by scrapping a cycling safety scheme.”
In a letter to council leader Keith Prince, Havering Cyclists’ group co-ordinator called on the local authority to reverse its decision.
“As previously mentioned, there were calls for action on the safety of Marsh Way long before the deaths occurred but while the administration of the day could reasonably argue that they did not have the resources to address the issue, that would not be the case going forwards,” he said.
“Honestly, how will we carry the guilt if further deaths occur on Marsh Way knowing that we had a fully (externally) funded solution planned and ready to implement but then turned our backs?
“I ask you again to reconsider this.”
Havering Cyclists said they received a reply to their letter on Sunday, but noted that they believe the “reasoning behind the decision to cancel the project is misguided”.
“We hope that the council will engage in further discussions that will lead to a resolution,” the group said.
