The Mayor and Transport for London (TfL) are giving people across London the opportunity to make the most of traffic free streets on World Car Free Day.
Around 50 streets across London from Hackney to Ealing will be traffic free on September 22 to help reclaim streets from traffic, which will open up spaces to the whole community.
Sadiq Khan and TfL are supporting the cause and encourage Londoners to make the most of traffic free streets
Transport for London’s head of delivery and planning Christina Calderato said: “We’re really pleased to be working with London Play and the boroughs to transform residential streets into traffic free zones for World Car Free Day this September.
"We hope that in doing so, people will start to view streets as valuable public spaces, where you can also meet, play, walk and cycle. By creating Healthy Streets, we aim to improve the quality of life for everyone in London.”
By supporting London Play, a charity that works to give children the freedom to play by shutting roads to traffic, streets across the capital will be traffic free for the day.
London Play’s deputy director Fiona Sutherland said: “Streets make up 80% of London’s public space, a valuable community resource which has largely been given up for the sole use of cars, parked or moving.
"Play streets are a simple concept giving local residents the opportunity to temporarily reclaim that space to come together informally with their neighbours, get active, build friendships and stronger communities as a result. We hope Car Free Day will inspire more people to start regular play sessions on their streets.”
Play streets, where roads are regularly shut to traffic for a few hours each week or month offer more than just a safe space for children to play outside with their friends, they also encourage a sense of community. London Play has been working to transform streets into safe, fun places for children since 2008.
Supporting streets without cars is part of the Mayor and TfL’s efforts to make London's communities greener, healthier and more attractive places to live, work, play and do business.
The Royal Borough of Greenwich is one of seven boroughs to share funding from the Mayor’s £114m Liveable Neighbourhoods programme, which supports boroughs to improve their local environments, enabling walking, cycling and the use of public transport.
Cllr Danny Thorpe Leader of the Royal Borough of Greenwich said: “Our long term vision is to remove traffic from Greenwich town centre permanently, making it cleaner and safer to walk and cycle. Reclaiming roads from cars means healthy streets with space to walk, play, sit and relax. I would encourage everyone to come along and take part in the festivities to support local businesses and help us shape our plans.”
This will be promoted during their car free event in Greenwich Town Centre on World Car Free Day. The event will feature street performers, live music and children’s activities, as well as trials of electric bikes and cycle checks.
Cllr Feryal Demirci Deputy Mayor of Hackney said: “We are proud to have introduced Play Streets to London back in 2012, and now have over 40 operating in the borough.
"This World Car Free Day, we’re partnering with Hackney Play Association to run over a dozen Play Streets simultaneously across Hackney, showcasing their transformative power to reclaim streets for play and promote walking, cycling and better air quality.”
Alongside Greenwich, Ealing, Hackney, Haringey, Havering, Lewisham and Waltham Forest boroughs were all successful in their initial bids last year, with projects ranging from a new square in Crouch End to the creation of a traffic free route along the former Grand Surrey Canal in Deptford.
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