Loving Boris bikes on Twitter

You can now follow the blog and other relevant cycling and cycle hire news on Twitter @iloveborisbikes

Around the boroughs - Hackney

Cycle culture: bikes on Pitfield Street

Hackney is famous for, among other things, being London's most cycle-friendly borough. A greater percentage of journeys is made by bike here than in any other London borough. But what about the Boris bikes?

Story so far: There has been cycle hire in Hackney since the launch of the scheme, initially docks were clustered close to the City in Shoreditch and its environs. The eastern extension of 2012 saw the bikes move into Hoxton and Haggerston.

Coming soon: I am grateful to the Suprageography blog for mapping the docking stations to be built on the northern edge of the

Dunston Street: signs of the future

scheme. A trip up north yesterday revealed a number of these stations are now under construction, so ten or possibly more new ones should appear in Hackney, centred on Haggerston north of the Regent's Canal, adding to the borough's bustling cycle culture. Not only will commuters benefit, there are docks situated canalside and close to Broadway Market for those looking for a leisure ride. I expect these docks to be popular, as Hackney has good cycle routes and a safer feel for the less-experienced cyclist.

The Future? Hackney is a large borough and only about a quarter of it will be home to Boris bikes, even after the expansion. I know of no future plans for enlargement in the borough but the cycling culture and a bike-friendly administration could one day see bikes moving further north into Dalston and Stoke Newington and east into Hackney Central and the area north of Victoria Park.

Boris rating: 6

Around the boroughs - Kensington and Chelsea

Story so far: K&C was included in the first phase of cycle hire and marked the western boundary of the scheme. New docks were added when Exhibition Road was repaved, and the 'eastern' extension of the scheme also included docks into the Westfield shopping centre, plus a scattering of stations to connect this to the existing zone. This left the borough essentially split, with no docks in the North Kensington area, or south towards the river.

Royal Borough: new riverside docks at Danvers Street

Coming soon: This year's expansion will make Boris bikes available across the borough, with bikes being added in the north and south, and additional docking stations being installed in the Holland Park area to intensify provision there. A provisional map is available here, though not all these stations have achieved planning permission. By my count, K&C will gain 31 docking stations in total.

The future? K&C is not known for being a bike-friendly borough (as a local councillor admitted to me recently). It has poor cycle routes, no plans for reductions in speed limits, and is generally dominated by motor traffic. Soon the borough will have an abundance of hire bikes, can it develop the infrastructure to enable their safe use by a wide diversity of users?

Boris rating: 6

Around the boroughs - Southwark

In the next two weeks I'm going to review all the boroughs which are currently, or soon to be, involved with the cycle hire scheme. I'll be asking what's there, what's coming, and what's still needed.

There's no particular order, so today I'm starting with Southwark.

Story so far: of all the central London boroughs this has the least docking stations, and most are in the Borough/ Elephant/Bermondsey area. All are popular docks, Hop Exchange probably being the busiest owing to its location close to London Bridge station. Curlew Street in Shad Thames is the easternmost station south of the river.

Southwark site: new docks will soon be here on Snowfields

Coming soon: intensification in the current expansion is limited to 3 docking stations close to London Bridge. These are much needed. Wansey Street has been closed for several months due to the fire at the Cuming Museum, hopefully this too will reopen.

The future? Southwark is the ideal borough for future expansion. It is central, relatively flat, and has potentially good cycling routes. Peckham, Rotherhithe and Camberwell would all be popular for Boris bike locations in my opinion. Docking stations could be added along superhighways 5 and 7.

Boris rating (out of 10): 4

St Martin's Close leads the way

Brand spanking new - St Martin's Close

The new phase of expansion is underway at last. Without fanfare, a new docking station opened at St Martin's Close on Camden Street, an excellent location entering Camden Town from the south. A few hours later Addison Road (see previous post) in Holland Park opened. Others are sure to follow - I saw Serco engineers testing bikes at Princedale Road this afternoon.

Up in Camden, another dock is in preparation in Hawley Crescent. I think this one is less well situated as it's a bit hidden away, but all extra capacity is welcome.

Coming soon - Hawley Crescent

My email to the cycle hire people about the launch date for the extended scheme was met with the rather curt reply 'December'. I expect the main zones of Hammersmith and Fulham, and Wandsworth, will go live then. In the lead up to that, keep watching for new docking stations within the existing zone opening up. Newton Street for example, in Westminster, is also under construction.

It's an exciting time. Please add a comment if you have further news on new stations - I am especially ignorant of what's going on in the north and east of the area currently covered by the scheme.

New docking stations taking shape

26 docking points recently installed on Addison Rd

I took this remarkable picture yesterday morning on Addison Road outside Cardinal Vaughan School (just off Holland Park Avenue), showing one of the new docking stations fully installed and ready for operation. Nearby the groundwork is complete on Holland Park Avenue near Princedale Road and workers are also busy installing docks right outside Holland Park tube station. For this part of London, currently right on the edge of the scheme, this marks significant intensification, and further docks are also being installed across an extended zone reaching west into Hammersmith and Fulham and northwards across more of the borough of Kensington and Chelsea.

And there is news of yet more docking stations being approved, after a dispute over planning.

City of London - Update

Docks coming soon - St Bride Street

Just occasionally one has too much time to spare and you unearth an interesting document on the internet. This happened to me today when I discovered the City of London's most recent council document on cycle hire.

The document recommends that as part of the current expansion of the scheme, four previously agreed docking stations should be installed. It also mentions a possible dock on Upper Thames Street, which is part of TfL's route network.

It's getting better - Bouverie Street

I had a cycle round these streets today. St Bride Street is under construction, and an area of Bouverie Street has been fenced off for an extension. John Carpenter Street has major building works, so nothing here at the moment, and Houndsditch also has work going on - though this would be an excellent new dock so I hope it does appear. Nothing yet on Upper Thames Street either.

The report acknowledges that demand outstrips supply in the Square Mile. I look forward to the new docks, and also hope that this won't be the end of expansion in the City.