Plans to extend London's cycle hire scheme revealed

Date: 10/11/2010

London's Barclays Cycle Hire Scheme will be extended far beyond the centre of the capital in time for the 2012 Olympic Games, it has been revealed.

Mayor Boris Johnson announced the project will reach as far as Olympia in the west and Bow in the east, including the boroughs of North Shoreditch and Hackney.

In total, the city will see 2,000 more bikes and 4,200 additional docking points available for use.

Mr Johnson said it would have been "nonsensical" not to expand the scheme, as Londoners have taken to it with such enthusiasm.

"Plans are now well advanced that will see the roll-out of thousands more of our gleaming bikes across the capital's legendary East End," he continued.

By 2012, the city will be able to invite the whole world to join its "cycling revolution," Mr Johnson added.

Last month, Transport for London launched a safety campaign urging cyclists to take extra care on the roads and reminding them not to undertake lorries at junctions.

Posted by Mary Treen