Mayor missing key transport targets: London is at a crossroads, say campaigners
This year, following Sadiq Khan’s historic third term re-election as Mayor, transport campaigners in London have tracked progress on key transport targets1 to assess how the Mayor is faring on his commitments. And the news is not good for London as a whole or the boroughs.
TfL and the boroughs are lagging behind in delivering the Mayor’s key commitments to reduce traffic, boost active lifestyles, increase bus speeds and end road deaths and serious injury. The campaigners say: simply put, TfL and councils are dithering while the Mayor’s targets slide ever further into the red.
On current trajectories towards the 2041 targets, the report, published today [15 July], shows most key targets are being missed. It also emphasises targets need to be brought forward a decade if the Mayor is to stick to his more recent pledge to deliver a net-zero city by 2030, since this will require a 27% cut in road kilometres driven by cars.
The coalition says it strongly supports the Mayor’s transport goals, but London is now at a crossroads and both TfL and the boroughs now need urgently to redouble efforts and take bolder steps to ensure the pledges are met.
Summary of MTS and Net Zero target progress
Sustainable mode share: Below the trajectory needed to meet the 2041 target and well below the trajectory needed if brought forward to 2030 to support the net zero pathway.
Active travel: Some improvement but far from being on course to meet this target.
Road casualties (Vision Zero): Significant progress but the 2022 interim target was missed (achieving 38% fall rather than 65% target); the 2030 interim target currently looks likely to be missed.
Car use / traffic: Currently going in the wrong direction and well behind the Net Zero 2030 car km reduction target.
Car ownership: This target is on course to be met early however it is un-stretching, requiring a reduction of just 250,000 cars (which would still leave 2.25m cars in London).
Bus speeds and km: In 2023/24 bus speeds hit a 10-year low at 9.2mph: this compares to the Bus Action Plan (published in 2022) target to reach 10.2mph by 2030.
Air quality: Good progress but work is needed to establish a revised target for reduction in NO2 concentrations compliant with new WHO guidelines, which are 4 times stricter.
Climate: TfL data shows London is broadly on track to meet the original 2050 target but “urgent and large-scale action” is needed to meet the accelerated 2030 target.2
Summary of borough progress
Tracking the boroughs across their actions and schemes over the last six years, campaigners see too few beacon boroughs rolling out healthy streets schemes and too many simply doing nothing. The 2024 Healthy Streets Scorecard, also published today [15 July], shows most boroughs have done little or nothing this past year. Just a handful of boroughs are making any progress at all. Credit goes to Islington and Waltham Forest in particular, this year’s top Inner and Outer boroughs. But many other boroughs have stalled.
The campaigners say all councils need to deliver like Islington and Waltham Forest – every single borough, every single year. Instead, the vast majority of boroughs, and the Mayor and TfL, talk loudly about facing a climate emergency, but then dither and delay.
The Healthy Streets Coalition is now calling on the Mayor, TfL and the boroughs to:
- Urgently create and publish a clear pathway to Net Zero 2030 – with mode share by year and actions needed to achieve them, and to realign other key targets to this.
- Work with the new national government on both a funding settlement and establishing the means to work with boroughs to ensure every single one acts to deliver the targets, with financial penalties for those who fail to act with sufficient speed.
- Ensure sustainable modes of transport are strongly prioritised, especially in TfL’s modelling, and particularly where financial support is concerned.
Cllr Rowena Champion, Islington Council’s Executive Member for Environment, Air Quality, and Transport, said: “Here in Islington, the transformation of our streets into community spaces that all can enjoy using is integral to our efforts to create a greener, healthier borough.
“Through the creation of our seven low-traffic neighbourhoods, 37 School Streets, network of cycleways, and pavement improvements, we’ve helped take a major step towards an eco-friendly future for Islington – and our performance in this year’s Healthy Streets Scorecard is yet another sign that we’re heading in the right direction.
“But, as today’s results show, there’s still so much more to do across London. That’s why we’re working directly with local people to understand the improvements they’d like to see in their communities as we create liveable neighbourhoods, we’re expanding our cycle training schemes so that even more residents can take part, and we’re continuing to work tirelessly to transform Islington’s streets.”
Councillor Clyde Loakes MBE, Waltham Forest Council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Climate Action and Air Quality said: “I’m delighted that once again Waltham Forest, especially in our 10th anniversary year of our ‘Enjoy’ Programme, has been recognised as the top outer London borough in this year’s Healthy Streets Scorecard. At the heart of our work is our ongoing mission to build safer, healthier and more resilient neighbourhoods and ensure that active travel is attractive, safe, simple and easy for all ages and abilities.
“Our pioneering Enjoy Waltham Forest programme is entering its second decade. As a result, our roads are safer, our air is cleaner and every year residents have more options to walk and cycle safely around our fantastic borough. In fact, there is now 56 kilometres of cycle tracks to travel safely on and over 800 bike hangars for safe storage dotted across the borough. We’ve also increased electric vehicle charging points, sustainable drainage and pioneered community, business and school-led parklets in our streets.
“But we still have so much more to achieve as we work towards net-zero for carbon emissions for our borough by 2030. We look forward to working with and influencing the Mayor of London and the new Government to not only make Waltham Forest a better place for our residents to live and work long into the future- Mission Waltham Forest commitments put tackling the climate crisis, as well as safer cycling and walking amongst the very highest of our priorities- but sharing our experiences and successes across London and the UK.”
| Metric | Best scoring borough/s | Worst scoring borough/s |
| % of streets with Low Traffic Neighbourhood | 68% (Hackney*) | 6% (Bexley) |
| % of schools with traffic-free School Streets | 54% (Lewisham) | 0% (Bexley, Hammersmith & Fulham) |
| Controlled Parking Zone coverage final scores as % | 98% (Hackney) | 10% (Bromley) |
| 20mph speed limits as % of borough managed roads | 100% (City of London, Hackney, Hammersmith & Fulham, Islington, Kensington & Chelsea, Lewisham, Southwark, Tower Hamlets, Westminster) | 5% (Bromley) |
| Cars registered per 100 households | 29 (Islington*) | 106 (Hillingdon) |
| % of polluting diesel cars | 14% (Camden) | 22% (Barking & Dagenham) |
| % of bus routes with bus priority (through bus lanes or modal filters) | 51% (Hackney*) | 1% (Bexley) |
View all the 2024 Results
View the 2024 Results Media Pack
- Progress on Meeting London Transport Targets report is published today 15 July 2024 by: Action Vision Zero, Clean Cities Campaign, CPRE London, Future Transport London, London Cycling Campaign, London Living Streets, Possible, Sustrans in London, and Wheels for Wellbeing [↩]
- Travel in London 2023 Annual Overview report p32 [↩]
