Council seeks views on ambitious plans for walking, cycling and electric vehicles

27 November 2023

As part of its ambitious Streets for People strategy, Southwark Council is asking for feedback on plans for walking, cycling and electric vehicles (EV) in the borough.

Streets for People sets out the council’s plans to improve the air we breathe in Southwark, address the climate emergency, and make the borough even greener and safer. The council wants to make walking, wheeling and cycling quicker, easier and safer for everyone.

The Walking Plan’s focus is on ensuring streets are safe, accessible and welcoming; creating a connected network to make it quicker and easier for people to get around different parts of Southwark. It prioritises pedestrians in public spaces, and supports walking, wheeling and running for leisure. It sets out how the council will improve streets and paths for everyone, young and old, including people with mobility issues, people who use wheelchairs or mobility scooters, the visually-impaired and people with children or pushing prams.

The Cycling Plan looks at how the council will ensure Southwark is a borough in which everyone who would like to cycle, can. Creating a network of safe and accessible streets and routes for all types of cycles is a key priority. It will ensure there is parking for all types of cycles as well as infrastructure for electrically assisted bicycles, electric scooters or other similar small electric vehicles. The council already trains over 3,000 children and adults in safe cycling every year and there are plans to increase this number.

Increasing walking, wheeling, cycling and public transport are key priorities, but where these are not possible the council wants to support residents and businesses to electrify their fleets, as well as its own fleet. Southwark is already several years ahead of Government targets for delivering charge points. The EV Plan sets out how the council will respond to requests from residents and businesses for EV charge points.

Cllr James McAsh, Cabinet Member for the Climate Emergency, Clean Air and Streets, said: “These plans build on our Streets for People strategy, which sets out how we are making Southwark’s streets safer, healthier and more pleasant places to walk, wheel and cycle. We want to hear residents’ views – to help us make their walking and cycling journeys quicker, easier and safer.”

The council will engage with underrepresented groups including people with disabilities, women and people from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities, across all demographics and abilities in developing the plans.

Consultation on all three plans is open until 31 January, 2024. Following consultation, delivery plans for each of these will be developed in 2024

Page last updated: 27 November 2023