Lewisham Council has been awarded £347,294 from the Mayor of London’s Streetspace programme, just under 12 per cent of the £2.9 million it applied for.  

London boroughs have been bidding for funding from Transport for London’s pot dedicated to councils so they carry out emergency transport measures to make it easier to social distance, walk, and cycle in the wake of Covid-19.  

Measures include widening pavements, creating cycle lanes, and introducing low traffic neighbourhoods and school streets by cutting some roads off from traffic. 

Another figure for Lewisham released last week – £479,659 – represents all the cash TfL has allocated to the borough, but the release of the remaining money is not guaranteed and will depend on how the schemes perform and how funding is used.  

Schools streets are part of Lewisham’s package of new measures – using planters and drop-down bollards to carry out timed or permanent road closures around schools to make it safer and less polluted for children.  

Sustainable transport that puts people and the planet first is fundamental to that vision

The schools benefitting will be announced at a later date.  

Councillor Sophie McGeevor, Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport said: “Over 50 per cent of our residents don’t own a car so enabling them to walk and cycle safely is a key priority.  

“As more Londoners return to work it’s our duty to ensure that we have done everything in our power to provide them with a safe alternative to public transport, to reduce pressure on the network and create space for those who must use public transport.  

“By encouraging car owners to switch to walking and cycling, we can reduce congestion on our roads which will benefit businesses and residents who need to make essential journeys using vehicles.

“The lockdown gave us a vision of what our streets could be like with less cars, and our residents have embraced that.  

“They don’t want us to return to what we had before, they want something better.  

“Sustainable transport that puts people and the planet first is fundamental to that vision.” 

Lewisham came twenty-third on the list of London boroughs receiving Streetspace funding – Lambeth Council was awarded the most with £2.6 million.