More than half of London’s official cycleways include sections that are unsafe for women to use at night, according to new research.The London Cycling Campaign found that 52 of the 89 cycleways had at least one “socially unsafe” section after dark and that seven cycleways were considered unsafe along their entire route.
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00:00Are women safe cycling at night in London?
00:02New research from the London Cycling Campaign found that more than half of women in the capital feel unsafe cycling after dark,
00:08stating that 52 of the city's 89 cycleways had at least one socially unsafe section after dark,
00:14and that seven cycleways were unsafe along their entire route.
00:17One example given is part of Cycleway 10, which passes Millwall Stadium,
00:21an isolated path along the overground line with blind corners and no escape route.
00:25The research found the area is a hotspot for bike-jagging and muggings,
00:29and that the main road alternative is unsegregated with a risk of collisions.
00:33Another example is the Grand Union Canal Cycleway,
00:36which research described as poorly lit, overgrown, and with known crime hotspots.
00:41Potentially dangerous routes like these discourage women from cycling in the city.
00:44Women make up only a third of all cycle journeys in London,
00:48compared to half of all cycle journeys in the Netherlands,
00:50and another report last year found that one in three women stopped cycling during winter or when it got dark early.
00:56The organisation has called on TfL to make social safety a funding criteria for new cycleways.
01:02In other words, proving that people will be safe from other people, as opposed to just environmental factors.
01:07TfL has welcomed the report and said it will carefully consider its recommendations.