New TfL data shows significant increase in walking and cycling since the pandemic started

Evidence that the Streetspace programme is working is confirmed by today’s release of traffic data by TfL.

Key findings

• Nearly half of all journeys in London were walked or cycled between April and June, up from 29 per cent before the pandemic
• 31 per cent of Londoners say they are walking to places where they used to travel by a different mode
• 57 per cent say they now walk more for exercise and 42 per cent walk for longer than they did before 
• The proportion of journeys made by private transport increased a worrying amount, from 38 per cent between January and March 2020, to 45 per cent between March and June 2020. This shows how important the Streetspace programme is to enable more journeys to be safely made by bike and on foot and avoid a damaging car-led recovery.

Will Norman, London’s Walking and Cycling Commissioner, said: “This new data fully encapsulates how the pandemic has transformed the way Londoners travel around our city. Many people enjoyed making the most of the quieter streets during lockdown and this change in habit has had lasting effects, with walking and cycling journeys continuing to be higher year-on-year. Our world-leading Streetspace programme is helping support this shift by enabling more people to safely walk and cycle across the capital. Without the measures we have rapidly rolled out, the worrying increase in private transport, such as cars, may have been even higher which would be extremely damaging for our city.

“The second phase of our Streetspace programme will enable us to build even further on the increasing number of Londoners walking and cycling and help ensure a cleaner, greener recovery from the pandemic.”