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24% of Cycle Network Unsafe After Dark

Women's Freedom After Dark report finds nearly a quarter of the total length of TfL’s cycle network is ‘socially unsafe’ after dark.

A new report from the London Cycling Campaign Women’s Network, supported by Forest, the shared e-bike service, and Madison, the UK’s leading distributor of cycle parts and accessories, has revealed the extent of unsafe routes for women in the TfL cycle network.

Nearly a quarter of the total length of TfL’s Cycleway network is ‘socially unsafe’ after dark – in other words there is a risk of harm from other people – such as stretches through unlit parks, industrial estates or alongside canals with no escape routes.

In addition, our analysis shows that over half of all TfL Cycleways have at least one socially unsafe section, 11 Cycleways are over 70% unsafe, and seven are 100% unsafe after dark.

Lack of safety after dark is a formidable barrier to cycling for women.

Our previous report What Stops Women Cycling in London? found one in three women of over 1,000 surveyed stopped cycling altogether after dark or in winter, due to a lack of safe routes.

While it’s not surprising to find this barrier where good cycle infrastructure is still lacking, such as most of outer London, we should not expect to find it on TfL’s official Cycleways.

AFTER DARK MAP

Supported by
Forest and Madison logos

  • 24% of TfL’s Cycleway network is socially unsafe after dark – 85 km in total
  • 58% of TfL’s Cycleways have at least one socially unsafe segment
  • Eleven Cycleways are socially unsafe for 70% or more of their length
  • Seven Cycleways are 100% socially unsafe after dark – the longest are the Grand Union Canal Cycleway and the Greenway (C22)
  • Most of the unsafe sections, at 63%, were in or next to parks. Other factors were waterways, railways, industrial areas and crossings such as underpasses. 

The methodology can be found here and the full report is available to download below.

 

“I have given up cycling along the main part of the Greenway after dark unless it’s really early when there are plenty of other cyclists around. I take a convoluted longer path instead which adds 15 minutes to my journey but having heard about bike-jackings I feel safer doing this.”

Action needed

To make cycling a mass form of sustainable transport in London, we need a city-wide cycle network that is safe all day and all year round. 

TfL should add ‘social safety’ to its Cycle Route Quality Criteria, ruling out poorly-lit, isolated areas – see our full criteria here – and ‘directness’, to rule out convoluted, indirect routes that are unsafe after dark.

TfL should urgently bring all current Cycleways up to the new quality criteria standard. Sections of existing routes, or entire routes, should be upgraded or rerouted in order to meet the criteria.

TfL should not approve or fund council delivery of routes that do not meet the updated criteria. Cycle routes through parks and so on are a valuable resource to be enjoyed – and can be delivered and funded by parks and others – but should not count as part of TfL’s core cycle network. Transport funding should be reserved for delivering strategic, inclusive Cycleways. 

TfL, councils and the police should also make leisure routes safer, with more CCTV and lighting in places like underpasses and routes that are isolated after dark, particularly at crime ‘hotspots’.

TfL (and Active Travel England) should develop new guidance on cycle infrastructure and social safety. For instance, Dutch designs of bridges and underpasses could be adopted that are far more welcoming than British ones.

The Freedom After Dark report is kindly supported by Forest, the shared ebike service, and Madison, the UK’s leading distributor of cycle parts and accessories.

Emma Barnie

Two men tried to push me off my bike as I was going past Millwall stadium. I didn’t cycle for months after because I was so scared. I now cycle on the main road alongside cars. I don’t feel safe there but it’s not as traumatic.

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