Category Archives: Olympic Park

Expansion to the Olympic Park

Good news that a small expansion of the cycle hire scheme has been announced into the Olympic Park. Eight docking stations will provide 320 docking points. Construction will begin in 2015 and the stations will be opened by early 2016. They will be the first docking points in Newham borough.

There has been criticism of the cycle infrastructure in the Park, but overall I think conditions are appealing enough for a good uptake of cycling in the area. The most popular area for Boris biking currently is Hyde Park; perhaps the Olympic Park will be an eastern hub of similar appeal, also providing some revenue to TfL's coffers.

The news of the extension comes after good news on hire figures during the summer months.

But still there is no news on any further extension in the south, especially to Bermondsey and Camberwell in Southwark borough. This summer TfL had promised that further sites would be sought within the existing zones to intensify the scheme. To my knowledge, none have so far been realised.

New sponsor?

The association of Barclays with London's cycle hire scheme has always produced a mixed response.

They certainly don't seem to have delivered the sponsorship which was promised.

So TfL are going after a new sponsor from 2015. Who will it be? Will it make a difference?

Usage this year is good, but there is a lot more to do. A new sponsor should be judged on their commitment to:
  • Expand the scheme - Southwark Borough, and eastwards into the Olympic Park, have both been seriously proposed. More central docks are needed too.
  • Increase usage - surely 40k journeys per day is not unachievable?
  • Better integration - Boris bikes need to made available on Travelcards, to Oyster users, and with Contactless. At the moment it's just not joined up with other transport choices.
If I were a multimillionaire I would sponsor Boris bikes. But I'm not so I hope a good partner is found. The success of the scheme in contributing to a real change in cycling culture in London depends on it.