A council has had its funding allocation from Transport for London suspended after the borough’s mayor unilaterally removed a protected cycle lane.

TfL only learnt of the removal of orca kerbs and wands along London Road in Croydon when the Mayor Jason Perry published an Instagram video bragging about dismantling the infrastructure.

In the video, published on 4th May, three days before the local elections, Perry said, “you told me they were a big issue. They impeded the local roads. They were causing congestion. Buses couldn’t get through, and we even had emergency vehicles being held up when they were on a call.

“Not only that, it also took out parking bays for local trade, which meant that people couldn’t stop and couldn’t shop in our local businesses.

“And if you’re a cyclist, they were actually quite dangerous as we weren’t able to get the right mechanical vehicles in to clean those lanes up. They had to go.

“I took decisive action to remove those wands […] and we’re now taking them out in the town centre. Your council should be making it easier for you to get around the borough, for you to get to where you want to go, for you to access your local shops.”


Perry, a Conservative, was subsequently re-elected as mayor later that week, although Croydon’s Local Democracy Reporter (LDR) say the Instagram post was what landed him in hot water, with the video alerting TfL to the unlawful removal of the infrastructure they had funded.

TfL has now suspended more than £2 million in funding towards the borough until it pays back the £234,917 which had been granted for the lanes’ construction since 2020/21. Croydon Council has committed to repaying the sum, though no timetable has been reported.

In the meantime, the funding freeze is delaying the progress and installation of several pieces of active travel-related infrastructure in the borough, including Healthy Neighbourhood schemes, comprising new zebra crossings and contra-flow cycle lanes, and additional bike parking spaces.

Perry, who has served as Mayor of Croydon since 2022, has been involved in removing protected cycle lanes before, having removed the wands on Brighton Road. However in 2023, a cyclist threatened legal action after he hit a remaining orca kerb and broke his wrist.

The below Google Maps image shows the road before the kerbs were removed, whilst previous maps show the road had not been narrowed to accommodate the protected cycle lane, contradicting the mayor’s claim that the lane would “hold up” buses or emergency services.

> Croydon cyclist breaks wrist after hitting base of cycle lane wand removed by council

More recently, a cyclist in Enfield who hit a kerb began pursuing a personal injury claim against the council in July, after he sustained life-changing injuries. Enfield Council are defending themselves, arguing the kerb itself is not defective.

Reacting to the news of Croydon’s funding freeze, London Cycling Campaign’s Head of Campaigns and Community Development Simon Munk wrote on Bluesky: “You cannot expect TfL and Londoners to pay councils to install safety & active travel schemes, then pay to rip them out, or even to pay for rubbish schemes that ignore or actively worsen active travel, road danger reduction, climate emissions reductions. This is a council leadership gone rogue.

“It’s great to see Will Norman, the Mayor of London and TfL taking action on behalf of Londoners and planet to ensure our money isn’t misspent and that all London boroughs act responsibly on climate, health, road danger, pollution, noise and more.”

Norman, Walking and Cycling Commissioner for London, told the LDR: “It is right that the council is required to repay the TfL funding that was spent on the cycle lane they removed without consent. Funding for their Local Implementation Plan has been paused and any future support will be subject to a revised plan being agreed.

“This should send a clear message to all boroughs: if you accept TfL funding, we expect you to deliver the projects that funding was intended to support and follow the legal processes.”