TfL community cycling grants to boost cycling projects across the Capital
· Twenty-five grants of £5,000 available for London-based cycling projects
· Any community group wishing to apply for funding can do so between 20 May and mid day on 3 June
Transport for London (TfL) is offering 25 grants of £5,000 to groups and organisations to help increase the number of cyclists in their communities.
The grants are part of the Community Cycling Fund for London (CCFL), a scheme funded by TfL and administered by the London Cycling Campaign (LCC) to support home grown initiatives that enable people of all ages and backgrounds to experience the benefits of cycling.
Any community group wishing to apply for funding can do so between 20 May and 3 June. Funding may be used to help to run local rides, events, bike maintenance or other small scale projects that encourage cycling and build the confidence of new and infrequent cyclists.
Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, said: “This is all about helping the smaller cycling groups within London to pass on their enthusiasm for cycling to local people. There is an army of potential cyclists within the boundaries of our great capital and the smaller community groups this funding is meant for have the local know how that will help them encourage other Londoners to take to two wheels.”
Ben Plowden, Director of Better Routes and Places at TfL, said:
“London’s cycle revolution is moving at a remarkable pace, with a huge rise in the number of journeys being made by bike and more and more people from all walks of life giving cycling a go.
“The Community Cycling Fund is a great way to create opportunities for people who may never have considered cycling to get on a bike and discover the benefits of cycling in London.”
Matt Mallinder, Deputy CEO of the London Cycling Campaign, says: “These grants are an excellent catalyst to get more people on bikes, which in turn opens up communities and provides health benefits and employment opportunities.”
Last year, a broad range of groups including schools, residents’ associations, mental health charities, and youth organisations received funding from the CCFL to encourage cycling in their communities.
For more details on the CCFL application forms and for eligibility criteria, visit www.lcc.org.uk/community . For all media enquiries please contact the TfL press office on 0845 604 4141.
The CCFL is part of the huge programme to promote cycling in London. The Mayor and TfL are introducing a wide range of initiatives to help increase the number of people cycling in the Capital, including:
· Barclays Cycle Hire - with more than four million journeys made since the scheme launched last summer
· By Spring of 2012, Barclays Cycle Hire will be extended eastwards as far as Bow while hundreds more docking points are being added in central London
· Barclays Cycle Superhighways, the first two of which were introduced last summer to make it easier and safer for cyclists to commute into London on direct and continuous cycle routes. The number of cyclists using the routes has increased up to 70 per cent with increases of 100 per cent or more seen during peak hours. Work on the next two routes is underway and the remaining eight routes will be introduced by 2015.
· Free or subsidised cycle training is available in most London boroughs.
· Earlier this month, the Mayor announced London’s thirteen biking boroughs who have been awarded a total of £4 million of funding to create cycle hubs and cycling communities in outer London. London’s biking boroughs for 2011 are: Barking and Dagenham; Bexley; Brent; Bromley; Croydon; Ealing; Haringey; Havering; Hillingdon; Hounslow; Kingston; Merton and Redbridge.
More information:
1. The Community Cycling Fund for London (CCFL) is a grant scheme funded by Transport for London and co-funded by the Big Lottery
2. A total of £125,000 is available for funding in 2011
3. Successful applications will be announced by 10 June 2011
