Mayor sets out ambitious plans to improve London’s roads

With London’s population forecast to grow from 8.6m people to 10m by 2030, the Mayor of London has set out wide ranging plans for the long-term improvements he believes will be needed to ensure the capital’s roads are able to cope with this growth. 

The Mayor and Transport for London (TfL) have been considering the potential for a wide range of measures including a network of congestion-busting tunnels, incentives to improve freight movement and changes to the way Londoners pay for road use.

Boris Johnson's plans come hot on the heels of calls by the Institution of Civil Engineers this week that the next London Mayor should look at more radical and innovative ways of paying for infrastructure in the capital.  

The Mayor has asked TfL to consider:

• Two new east-west cross-city tunnels to reduce congestion by up to 20 per cent and save the London economy £1bn each year
• Smaller tunnels and ‘flyunders’ in locations around the capital to unlock land for thousands of jobs and homes, while cutting congestion and improving the environment
• Devolution of Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) to ensure revenue is reinvested in the capital’s roads
• Looking at the potential for greater management of freight to improve safety and reduce congestion and emissions
• That the TfL Board approves work on a planning submission for Silvertown Tunnel

During his term in office, the Mayor has created a major £4bn roads programme for London, the largest investment in the capital’s roads in a generation. Now, the Mayor has set out further measures that will be needed to manage the extra one million trips per day that are being added to the capital’s transport network every five years. If left unmanaged, congestion could potentially increase by 60 per cent over the next 15 years in central London, 25 per cent in inner London and 15 per cent in outer London, unless these strategic plans are put in place.

Last year the Mayor asked Transport for London to look into the potential for new tunnels to relieve congestion in London. His preferred option that has emerged from this work is two major east-west cross-city tunnels. TfL will now carry out further detailed feasibility studies into these new tunnels, which could reduce congestion by up to 20 per cent in central London and attract investment to the areas above them, whilst radically improving the quality of the local environment and creating new space on the city surface for pedestrians, cyclists and buses. 

A number of smaller tunnels and ‘flyunders’ across London have also been identified that would see roads moved underground, unlocking land at the surface for thousands of new homes and open space.  According to the mayor, two locations - the A13 in Barking and the A3 at Tolworth - would have the potential to release land for up to 6,000 homes combined, with a broader significant regeneration impact across a wider surrounding area.

The mayor has also called on the government to consider devolving the revenue from Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) to London. This would allow the mayor to ensure that money collected from London’s road users is directly invested into the capital’s roads rather than diverted into general national tax revenue. It would also address the fact that none of the £500m per annum raised from VED on London-registered vehicles is currently spent on the capital’s roads.

TfL has also started work to explore how the logistical burden of several charges could be eased. With schemes such as the Congestion Charge and Low Emission Zone (LEZ) already in place, the Ultra-Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) being implemented in 2020, and proposed charges on the Blackwall and future Silvertown tunnels, the mayor believes there could be an opportunity to simplify payments through a more integrated approach.  

TfL will examine whether charges could be integrated to form a single, more sophisticated method of paying for road use in the capital, without charging motorists more. 

The Mayor has also highlighted the need to look at the impacts of the increasing amount of freight traffic on London’s roads. Over 90% of all freight in London is transported by road, and during the morning peak period 30% of all central London traffic is freight related.  The number of vans on London’s roads increased by 10% between 2011 and 2014.  Responding to calls from a number of quarters for better management of freight movement in the city, the Mayor has asked TfL to look at how freight coming into the city could be better managed, making it easier for deliveries to happen while decongesting the capital’s roads. 

"Around eight of every ten journeys in London are made using our roads, which is why it is vital that we think big."

- London Mayor, Boris Johnson

London mayor, Boris Johnson, said: “London is booming and, as our great capital thrives, our ambitions for the veins and arteries that keep our city alive must grow with it. Around eight of every ten journeys in London are made using our roads – whether by car, taxi, motorbike, bus, cycle, foot, or freight – which is why it is vital that we think big. We must deliver long-term solutions that will not just make the most of the space we have for road users, but bring environmental and amenity improvements to local areas. 

“By pushing forward strategic initiatives we are outlining today, we will lay the foundation for the next wave of improvements to everyone’s experience of the road network across the city,” Johnson said.