London Mayor Sadiq Khan announces £770m cycling fund

The mayor of London has announced plans to spend £770m on cycling schemes over the next five years.

The Transport for London (TfL) draft business plan allocates £154m a year for infrastructure and promoting cycling.

Sadiq Khan said he wants to make cycling a "safe and obvious choice for Londoners of all ages and backgrounds".

But the Conservatives have accused Mr Khan of failing to explain "where the money is coming from".

Former mayor Boris Johnson spent £158m on cycling last year, and £302m over his final four-year term.

The proposed spending, equivalent to £17 per Londoner per year, gets near the levels seen in cycle-friendly nations such as the Netherlands and Denmark.

Two new Cycle Superhighways, which separate cyclists from motor traffic, have also been proposed.

One of the proposed Cycle Superhighway will head along Portland Place into the West End

Among the schemes set to receive funding are the completion of phase two the Cycle Superhighway from Farringdon to King's Cross, the extension of the East-West Cycle Superhighway.

Three so-called mini-Holland schemes are also planned, which involve reducing through-traffic on quiet residential streets, and "at least" 20 Quietway routes along back streets were announced.

Mr Khan said "making cycling safe and easier can provide huge benefits for us all".

Tom Edwards, BBC London Transport Correspondent

Sadiq Khan's proposals could maintain the momentum for more segregated bike lanes - key schemes under the previous Mayor Boris Johnson's administration.

We don't have much detail yet, and these schemes are contentious; some blame bike lanes for London's congestion. But the Mayor is showing his intent and his priorities.

There are also questions over where the money is coming from.

There will be some departments in TfL who won't be as fortunate and will see cuts.

The Conservative's transport spokesman on the London Assembly, Keith Prince, said he hoped "this is not yet another grand pledge on which the mayor fails to deliver".

"Having already taken £640m from TfL's budget with his fares freeze, the mayor is now promising large-scale cycling investment without explaining where the money is coming from," Mr Prince added.

Green Party Assembly Member Caroline Russell called for the mayor to double the investment "to transform our streets more thoroughly and more quickly".

She claimed: "Getting more people onto bikes and getting around on foot could make life so much better for all."

The draft business plan will be considered by the TfL board at its next meeting on 15 December.