Just when you thought you’d seen every weird, head scratching proposal in the world of active travel, Transport for London go and reveal their plans for a ‘bike bus’ to shuttle cyclists through the forthcoming, and much-maligned, Silvertown Tunnel in London.

And no, I’m not talking about the kind of bike bus that sees children cycle to school in a mini parent-led peloton.

According to TfL, who announced a consultation on the plans yesterday (link is external), a “bespoke” shuttle bus could run every 10 minutes under the Thames and carry only cyclists and their bikes, which would either be brought onto the bus or loaded onto a trailer behind it.

Pedestrians would not be able to use the bus, with conventional zero-emission buses set aside for them.

The cycling shuttle bus idea comes after TfL said back in 2019 that it could not afford to build a walking and cycling bridge between Rotherhithe and Canary Wharf, and that it would be “unsafe” to allow cyclists to ride through Silvertown Tunnel, which will open in 2025 and link the Royal Docks and Canary Wharf with north Greenwich.

The new tunnel has been the subject of vociferous criticism over the years, with campaigners and councillors claiming that it will encourage car use, result in more lorries entering London, and increase pollution.

However, TfL says that the shuttle bus is the best option for cyclists crossing the river in east London as services could be tailored to “uncertain demand”. People on bikes can currently use the cable car – which is free in the morning – or walk their bike through the Greenwich or Woolwich foot tunnels, though frequent lift closures often mean cyclists are forced to carry their bikes up and down the stairs.

TfL also says that they are considering in the future a cross-river ferry service which could be used by pedestrians and cyclists, though several attempts at a high-speed ferry service have been dropped in the past due to costs.

Praising the proposals for the Silvertown Tunnel shuttle bus, Will Norman, London’s walking and cycling commissioner, said: “These plans will mean that cyclists will benefit from easier travel between the Greenwich Peninsula and Silvertown, enabling more people to make the switch to active travel and helping to build a better, greener London.”

However, despite Norman’s praise, cyclists on Twitter have been scathing – to put it mildly – of the ‘bike bus’ plans.

“This is 2023. The climate is at a tipping point. We must reduce car use by 27-40 percent according to London Mayor Sadiq Khan’s own carbon plan. So putting bikes on a bus instead of creating bike lanes is bonkers. Please repurpose the Silvertown Tunnel, the sooner the better,” wrote Victoria Rance, a local teacher and the founder of the Stop the Silvertown Tunnel Coalition.

“I do also think that bus is ridiculous. It will be a huge disruption to people’s journeys,” added another Twitter user. “If there is enough demand for a bus then there should be enough demand for a bike path.”

“A city which cannot afford to build a dedicated bridge or tunnel for cycles and pedestrians, but dedicates countless billions to new infrastructure for more cars. Embarrassing,” wrote Nick.

Some noted that, despite TfL’s claims that the bike bus will cater to all types of cycles, the potential difficulties in manoeuvring cargo bikes, non-standard bikes, and hand cycles off the bus.

“Doesn’t this just have all the same issues as the cable car, which also has a door on one side?” wrote Alex.

Others, meanwhile, have referred to the proposals as “deeply impractical” and a “ham-fisted” attempt at “bikewashing” the Silvertown Tunnel project.

“Evidence that whilst you can’t polish a climate turd, you can sprinkle it with active travel glitter,” Jon chipped in (rather poetically, I may add) on the proposals.

“Silvertown Tunnel will likely increase, rather than decrease, greenhouse gas emissions, will, at best, redistribute air pollution rather than decrease it, will cause induced traffic, and is incompatible with the targets for climate action linked to the 2015 Paris accords.”

But otherwise, it all sounds great, yeah?

So, what’s the alternative?

“Repurposing the tunnel would be so much better. Or building the cycle bridge,” argued the Greenwich branch of the London Cycling Campaign.

“All Silvertown will bring is more pollution and more congestion. It is incompatible with a responsible climate policy in its current form.”

https://road.cc/content/news/cycling-live-blog-18-july-2023-302597#live-blog-item-47433