Campaign to bring Boris bikes to Brixton

By Zoe Jewell, Editor

A campaign to bring London’s cycle hire scheme to Brixton has been launched by local Labour activists and councillors.

An online page and petition entitled ‘Bikes2Brixton’ was created on the Labour-run campaigning website, Campaign Engine Room, on 2 January.

The petition had received 120 signatures within 24 hours and has now been signed by over 200 people.

Lambeth council leader Steve Reed and London Assembly member Val Shawcross joined a small protest on Saturday 7 January outside the Ritzy, to lend their support to the campaign.

Tom Pollard, running the campaign, said: “There’s a big disparity between north and south London – only a sixth of the cycle hire docks are in south London. That’s only 65 out of the 414 docking stations.

“There’s lots going on in Brixton at the moment and the extension would mean that people who get on the bikes in central London can come here too.”

The campaigners took their inspiration from a successful local petition in Stockwell, where the cycle hire scheme will now be installed this year.

Pollard hopes to ensure a commitment for bikes in Brixton from all mayoral candidates in the run-up to this year’s mayoral elections in May.

Kulveer Ranger, the Mayor of London’s environment director, said: “The mayor has always made it clear that if funding were available he would be keen to take his cycle hire scheme to every corner of the capital where practical.”

He said a “phenomenal” nine million journeys have already been made on the bikes, sponsored by Barclay’s, and expansion into Wandsworth and Lambeth over the next two years had been confirmed.

Transport for London are working on an extension of the scheme to east London, due to launch later this year and the mayor has asked TfL to prepare plans for an expansion westwards, including in Lambeth.

Windrush Square is one site proposed for the bike docking stations, should the scheme be extended to Brixton.