Work to begin on London’s Cycle Superhighway 5

Transport for London (TfL) is set to start work on the next phase of its Cycle Superhighway programme this month.

Cycle Superhighway 5, from central London to New Cross Gate, will be substantially improved over plans previously announced, including more full segregation, junction improvements, more semi-segregation and two new 20mph speed limits, in line with the Mayor's recent Vision for Cycling.

The new Cycle Superhighway 5 route will open in three stages:

In stage one, on which work will begin this month, the route between Oval and New Cross Gate will be constructed to the plans announced in December, with some slight alterations. This stage will be open by October and will include two new 20mph speed limits, at Camberwell and New Cross Gate, and long stretches - 3.2km - of new, wider mandatory cycle lane

In stage two, all the bus lanes and mandatory cycle lanes on the first section - the  majority of the route - will be semi-segregated from general traffic using cats eyes, rumble strips, traffic wands or similar.

In stage three, the section between Oval and central London, will be completed later in 2014 to a higher standard. The more extensive changes to this stretch of route are still being finalised. They will be announced and consulted on later this year.

Cycling commissioner Andrew Gilligan said: “In stages over the next year and a bit, CS5 will unveil more of the Mayor's vision for cycling in London. The first stages will be an important test-bed for our concept of 'semi-segregated' cycle routes on Victorian streets which are too narrow and thronged with buses for full segregation to be possible. Stage three, the inner section, will deliver even more significant improvements on the previous plans.”

Leon Daniels, managing director of surface transport at TfL, added: “The next phase of our successful Barclays Cycle Superhighway programme will deliver cycle safety improvements to Southwark, Lambeth and Lewisham.

“Since the introduction of Barclays Cycle Superhighways in July 2010, the number of cyclists on the four existing routes has increased by an average of 77% during peak periods.”