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TfL has set out plans to overhaul one of southeast London’s “most dangerous” roads and make neighbourhoods between Greenwich and Woolwich safer for people walking and cycling, as part of its Vision Zero commitment to eliminating death and serious injury on London’s roads.
Currently, road danger in the area is high, with 215 collisions leading to death or injury recorded along the A206 Woolwich Road in 2017 and 2018. In 2017, 18% of all casualties on the road were people cycling.
TfL plans to tackle this and improve air quality in the area by building a new high-quality 6.5-kilometre Cycleway, which would run between Greenwich and Woolwich. This would connect to the Royal Borough of Greenwich’s future Liveable Neighbourhood plans for Greenwich Town Centre and to Cycleway 4 to create a continuous safe cycling route from Tower Bridge to Woolwich.
TfL is asking people to have their say on the first phase of this route, between Charlton and Woolwich, with plans including:
– A new two-way fully segregated high-quality 2.5-kilometre Cycleway, which would run along the A206 Woolwich Road
– Six new pedestrian crossings with improvements to a number of others along the route, serving key local communities, schools, the Woolwich Ferry and Warspite Road
– Extending the existing bus lanes to make journeys by bus quicker and easier. Half of all trips along Woolwich Road are currently made by bus
– Widening the pavement at a number of locations, to give people walking more space
TfL is also working on significant improvements at the Angerstein roundabout, where two people have been killed while cycling in recent years. TfL is asking people for their initial thoughts on plans to simplify the junction and make it easier to navigate for everyone. There would be a new fully segregated cycleway through the junction, with new signals to help people walking and cycling navigate the junction safely and easily.
London’s walking and cycling commissioner Will Norman said: “I’m delighted that we’re pushing ahead with these bold plans – part of a new high-quality cycle route from Tower Bridge all the way to the heart of Woolwich. With additional pedestrian crossings and a new bus lane, the route will be made better and safer for everyone.
“The area around Angerstein roundabout has seen two fatalities in recent years, and we will continue to work closely with Greenwich Council to deliver these vital improvements as soon as possible.”
TfL’s consultation into the first 2.5-kilometre of the route, between Charlton and Woolwich, is now open until 16th February and is available on the TfL website. A further consultation on the section between Charlton and Greenwich will follow.
The Royal Borough of Greenwich will be consulting on its TfL-funded Liveable Neighbourhood scheme in Greenwich Town Centre in the spring. The scheme is set to transform the existing, outdated one-way system to make it safer and easier for people using public transport, walking and cycling. As part of the plans, a new segregated Cycleway through the town centre would connect west towards central London via Cycleway 4 and east towards Woolwich.
TfL is working to create Healthy Streets across London, which enable people to walk and cycle. Construction on a number of major new Cycleways is either underway or set to begin. Work on Cycleway 4 between Tower Bridge and Greenwich began in June 2019, whilst work on a new cycle route between Brentford and Olympia started in December. TfL is also transforming other outdated and intimidating gyratory systems across London, with construction complete at Highbury Corner and underway at Old Street.
