City planning report recommends squeezing out London motor traffic

A new report produced by Centre for London says that motorists will have to give up residential car parking with greater transport emphasis instead being placed on trains, buses and bikes. The think tank advocates reallocation of space to create more segregated cycle lanes and priority bus lanes.

The BBC reports on The Future of London's Roads and Streets report, which looks at how the capital could tackle the various pressures on its transport system.

It describes a clear hierarchy which would see road space reallocated to deliver adequate pedestrian space, new segregated cycle lanes and priority bus lanes – plus “consideration of where emerging shared mobility services sit in this hierarchy.”

Great emphasis is placed on reclaiming residential car parking space. Escalating charges for more polluting vehicles are recommended, as are incentives for households to give up their permits. It adds: “Using the kerb space hierarchies, boroughs should develop a robust cycle parking strategy including reallocation of kerb space to cycle parking.”

Other recommendations include the introduction a "movement code" to guide interaction between different road users; enforcement of traffic rules by a dedicated body; and expansion of the Oyster card system to include bike hire and taxis.

The report also suggests the introduction of a pre-pay road user pricing system. It says of this: “The scheme needs to reflect the internal and external costs and environmental impacts of journeys, while being fair, and easy to understand and administer.”

Responding to the findings, Val Shawcross, Deputy Mayor for Transport at City Hall, said:

“As the report recommends, it is essential that we encourage more people to cycle and walk as part of their everyday lives, and use public transport as an alternative to car use.

“We have some of the most ambitious plans to reduce dangerous emissions of any city in the world, and we will continue to keep London’s existing and planned road charging schemes under review, ensuring they deliver the best outcomes for our city over the coming years.”