A new safe, attractive and direct route helps Londoners walking or cycling to avoid a busy road
The path will be a real boon for the people of London, becoming a green oasis
Route manager David Hibbs is delighted to take a first spin on the new path
Before: We removed 6.4 tonnes of old rail, 3.8 tonnes of sleepers, & improved 1540 sq mtrs of grassland habitat
The new public square transforms the experience of rail users and people walking or cycling
We’ve turned derelict railway sidings behind Millwall Football Club, regularly used as a rubbish dump, into a public square and a safe walking and cycling path that helps people to avoid busy roads. The path forms part of Q1, the first London Quietway, linking Waterloo to Greenwich.
We are particularly proud of the new public space created at South Bermondsey Station entrance, transforming the experience of rail users, local residents and people walking or cycling.
We led on feasibility, design and managing construction of the public square and path.
The scheme, funded by Transport for London, was built on a disused rail line behind South Bermondsey Station and opened to the public in 2016 after more than three years of effort from Sustrans. The 750-meter new path provides a safe, attractive and direct route and links to one of our earlier projects to connect communities to safe, traffic free cycling and walking networks, which provided a new bridge crossing Rotherhithe New Road.
From a derelict railway siding to a green oasis
Together with project partners including Network Rail, London Boroughs of Southwark and Lewisham, Millwall Football Club and Millwall Community Trust, we overcame engineering challenges, match day crowds and invasive plants to transform the site.
Delivering a transformative project
We removed 6.4 tonnes of old rail, 3.8 tonnes of sleepers, treated 400 square meters of Japanese Knotweed and improved 1,540 square meters of grassland habitat, turning patches of previously derelict land into a green oasis.
We are delighted to see the project reach a successful conclusion. It will be a real boon for the people of London.
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The Millwall cycle path illustrates how many years it can take to get a good concept implemented. Things speeded up when Sustrans took the leading role.
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Councillor Darren Merrill, Southwark cabinet member for environment and public realm during the path's construction, said:
“This forms an important part of our ambitious new cycling strategy, a council-wide commitment to boost cycling numbers in the borough by creating new routes, improving road infrastructure and offering free cycle training to give residents, of all ages and background, the confidence to cycle.”
Brian Deegan, Principal Technical Specialist at Transport for London said:
“I have been trying to help make the Millwall connection happen for 15 years and so I am delighted that Sustrans have finally achieved it. The previous route involved a huge detour and mixed cyclists with large volumes of heavy goods vehicles and so this connection represents a tremendous improvement.
"One of the great barriers to cycling in South East London has now been removed with the introduction of this attractive, green, traffic-free connection, and so many thanks to Sustrans for their role in this success."
We hope that this vital new link will enable local residents to feel confident getting on their bikes. We look forward to working on more projects like this which have the potential to transform a whole community and provide vital links for safe cycling.
New London Awards 2016 - Shortlist
We are proud to announce the Millwall Quietway link has been shortlisted in the New London Awards 2016, under the Public Spaces category. The aim is to recognise the very best new and proposed architecture, planning and development in the capital.