Boris Bikes in Wandsworth by 2013?

Plans are being prepared to extend to Mayor's popular 'Boris Bikes scheme to Wandsworth.  The first cycle superhighway to be introduced, the CS8, routes through the Borough to Westminster.

Now, the council is discussing with Transport for London the possibility of extending the Barclays Cycle hire scheme to the borough. These discussions are at an early stage but if they prove successful, then Boris Bikes could arrive in Wandsworth in 2013.

Dozens of docking stations could be positioned at key locations around the borough, mainly near rail stations and busy shopping areas.

The scheme has proved enormously popular in central London where the distinctive blue bikes, sponsored by Barclays, have been used for hundreds of thousands of short journeys since they were introduced exactly one year ago.

At the moment there are 6,000 bikes available from 352 docking stations, 24 hours a day seven days a week. People who have signed up to the scheme can use the bikes free of charge for up to half an hour or for as little as £1 for a journey lasting up to an hour.

 

Yesterday the Mayor announced his intention to expand the scheme to parts of west and south west London, including Wandsworth, with Barclays providing an additional £25m of funding.

Wandsworth's transport spokesman Cllr Russell King said: "The discussions are at an early stage, but we are very keen to explore the possibility of getting Boris Bikes to Wandsworth at the earliest possible opportunity.

"These bikes have revolutionised the way people travel around London and we look forward to seeing these benefits extended south of the river."

Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, added: "One year ago all of my fingers and toes were crossed as I launched a glorious new form of public transport in London. Today it is testament to the huge impact of Barclays Cycle Hire and to the rapidly increasing popularity of pedal power in London that I can announce we are now planning to swathe a huge chunk of the west of our city with our beautiful bikes."