New section of protected cycle lane through Balham and Tooting
Cycle Superhighway 7 through Tooting. Picture: Steven Craven
Balham and Tooting residents can expect to see some significant changes to roads and cycle routes in the coming weeks as part of temporary upgrades to Cycle Superhighway 7.
Transport for London has said that as the capital emerges from lockdown “we will need to help people to walk and cycle more often, to reduce demand for public and private transport to essential trips only.
“From mid-late July we will begin work on temporarily upgrading Cycle Superhighway 7, as part of our plan to create a cycle corridor to follow the Northern line from Colliers Wood to Elephant & Castle. The first phase of our work will focus on the section from Balham to Colliers Wood.”
This 3.7km upgrade of the cycle route (which is celebrating its tenth birthday) will also add new sections of protected cycle lane.
It is hoped it will free up space on the Tube during peak periods.
There is no confirmed end date for construction but a spokesperson said TfL is “working to build this as quickly as possible and should see the first sections opening in the coming weeks.”
Nightingale Ward Conservative councillors have sent messages to residents encouraging them to email TfL and the Mayor at streetspacelondon@tfl.gov.uk to provide feedback on the changes.
They say that the “significant changes” to the A24 will see “roads closed, turnings restricted and parking bays taken out”, and have raised concerns about how residents will access their own roads, parking for the disabled, picking up prescriptions and going to and from school and work.
They said: “We understand that COVID-19 and the rules of social distancing mean that measures need to be imposed very quickly and we are certainly in favour of the encouragement of cycling and walking.
“But we also know that many residents are concerned about the effect on their daily lives.”
The key changes you can expect to see are:
Multiple parking and loading bays will be removed from the A24, with most being relocated to nearby side roads. On side roads you will be able to load in marked bays between 10am to 4pm Monday to Sunday for a maximum time of 20 minutes. Disabled bays will be in operation for a maximum of three hours.
TfL has said it will monitor the effects of these temporary changes over the coming months and is also encouraging feedback from users.
For more information, visit this page.
Sian Bayley - Local Democracy Reporter
July 28, 2020