Urban Transport

• Improving public transport : Buses

  • Using buses in London has been made more attractive, with more convenient and quicker bus routes, using bus lanes to speed up journeys.
  • London commuters can travel on most forms of transport using the Oyster card (which is topped up) or a contactless bank card allowing people to move without needing a ticket.
• Positives of public transport

  • Priority of bus lanes promotes public transport + prevents buses being held up in traffic
  • Buses now carry 2.3 billion passengers in London per year
• Negatives of public transport

  • Public transport – Many people aim to avoid public transport as it can be unreliable
  • does not take you to the exact location
  • bus use hit its lowest levels in 2016.
• Self services bicycle hires : Santander Cycles


  • hired for as little as £2 a day
  • Cycle lanes + parking facilities can be found throughout london
• Positives of self service bicycle

  • Hiring a bike is cheap + much more environmentally friendly than a vehicle.
  • Operation was very successful in first 10 weeks, more than 1 million cycles taken in a week
• Negatives of santander cycles

  • Require constant maintenance
  • Road accidents are still frequent, so people feel discouraged to use them
• Congestion charge

  • A congestion charge of £11.50 to drive into the centre of London.
  • Paid online, or by phone, fine issued for those who do not pay
• Positives of congestion charge

  • Main response of drivers to switch to public transport
  • 70,000 fewer vehicles in the charging zone
• Negatives of congestion charge

  • It has not reduced congestion as much as previously anticipated.
  • Can have a negative impact on businesses as less shoppers
• Pedestrianised cities

  • pedestrianised shopping streets keep traffic away from the city centre making it safer and less polluted and reduces congestion.
• Reducing congestion importance


  • less time is wasted in travel so businesses stay profitable / so people can comfortably travel to work and won’t therefore leave the city.
  • reducing carbon emissions, reducing the greenhouse effect + climate change