Mayor of London Boris Johnson has announced finalised plans for a new cycle superhighway in the UK capital.

After what Johnson called “one of the the biggest consultation exercises in Transport for London’s (TfL’s) history”, plans have been given the green light by the mayor, who has pledged £913m (€1,222m, US$1,386m) towards getting Londoners back on their bikes.

The scheme will create Europe’s longest segregated urban cycle way through central London, with a north to south route between Kings Cross and Elephant and Castle and an east to west route linking Barking with Acton allowing cyclists to bike past the Houses of Parliament. Two other routes will also be built if the plans are approved.

Although opposition to the new cycle highway was raised by some groups, including the Canary Wharf Group and the London Taxi Drivers Association, an overwhelming 84 per cent of 21,465 people who responded to TfL’s extensive survey backed the plans.

In a statement, Johnson said: “I now look forward to the transformation that these planned routes will bring – not just for people who cycle now, but for the thousands of new cyclists they will attract.”

The TfL board will be asked on 4 February 2015 to approve the construction of the highway. If this goes ahead, the work is expected to start in March of this year, with the £41m (€55m, US$62m) central route between Tower Hill and Paddington hoped to be complete by 2016.

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