The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has set out a packed programme of cycling investment and activities, across the summer and beyond, to boost the numbers of Londoners travelling by bike. Today he has announced that the first two cycle superhighways will launch on 19 July and revealed new figures confirming there has now been a 117 per cent increase in cycle journeys on London’s major roads in the last decade, up 14 per cent since he was elected. The Mayor also called on new cyclists to join the thousands of Londoners that have already taken to two wheels to take part in this year’s London Cycle Challenge, which starts on 1 June.  Londoners of all ages can form teams and compete against other groups - which can be made up of families, friends or work colleagues to see who can clock up the most cycling miles next month. The Cycle Challenge is the first in a calendar of summer cycling events that includes the launch of the Mayor’s London Cycle Hire scheme, the launch of the first two Cycle Superhighways and the return of the Mayor’s Skyride. 2010 is London’s Year of Cycling and today the Mayor released a document that sets out his 10 priorities for the cycle revolution taking place in the capital. These include: · Reducing cyclist casualties, in particular collisions between cyclists and HGVs; · increasing cycle parking on streets, in workplaces, and at stations and schools; · tackling cycle theft; and · ensuring cycling becomes an integral part of the way London is planned and run. Sixteen major organisations across the capital have also agreed to sign up to the Mayor’s ten priorities for cycling in the capital. They include the Freight Transport Association, the Metropolitan Police, NHS London and the London Cycling campaign. The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said: “I am determined to transform London into a city that cycles and where hundreds of thousands enjoy the elixir of using two wheels to get around the capital. Our cycling revolution is rapidly gathering pace, but there’s still huge potential to increase the number of journeys that Londoners make by bike and today we’re setting out exactly how we’re going to do that. “With the launch this summer of the London Cycle Hire scheme, Cycle Superhighways and a fit-to-burst schedule of cycling events, there has never been a better time to give pedal power a punt. I urge everyone to sign up and take part in this June’s London Cycle Challenge.” £116m will be spent by the Mayor and Transport for London (TfL) on cycling this year, which includes funding for the London Cycle Hire scheme, Cycle Superhighways, training, promotion, led rides and education. TfL is also working closely with 13 outer London "biking boroughs" to develop practical plans that will unlock the huge potential for cycling in outer London. But first off the blocks this summer will be the London Cycle Challenge. New and existing cyclists can visit tfl.gov.uk/cycling to sign up for the London Cycle Challenge, order free cycle maps, TfL-funded cycle training, and to find out more about hundreds of free led rides that will take place in the capital this summer. Kulveer Ranger, the Mayor of London’s transport advisor, said: “There is huge potential to increase the popularity of cycling in the capital and that is why City Hall, our partner organisations and many others are working incredibly hard on plans that we hope will make London the biggest and best cycling city in the world. It’s an ambitious target, but the wheels are turning, and the cycling revolution is under way.” David Brown, TfL’s Managing Director of Surface Transport, said: “Cycling offers the ultimate cheap, fast and flexible way to get around London while improving your health at the same time.  The Cycle Hire scheme and Cycle Superhighways arrive in the Capital in July, but in the meantime there’s plenty for cyclists of all ages and abilities to enjoy.” ENDS Notes to editors: · For more information on London’s cycling revolution, log on to www.tfl.gov.uk/cyclingrevolution. · The London Cycle Challenge is a web-based challenge that runs every year during the month of June. You can register now at tfl.gov.uk/cyclechallenge. The challenge is open to Londoners of all ages, with participants needing to get together in teams to log the trips they make by bike in June. A mile counter clocks up the total miles that challenge participants have logged to date and leader boards show how teams made up of friends, families or colleagues are faring against each other to stimulate competition. The first two cycle superhighway routes will launch on 17 July 2010. They will run from Barking to Tower Gateway and Merton to the City. · The London Cycle Hire scheme launches on Friday 30 July 2010. Once complete, it will provide 6,000 hire bicycles available from 400 docking stations, and is expected to generate up to 40,000 extra daily cycle trips in central London. · The Cycle Superhighways are a set of 12 routes that will deliver benefits to cyclists by making it safer and easier to commute by bike between outer and inner London on direct and continuous cycle routes. Works on London’s first two cycle Superhighways are well underway, with both pilot routes (Merton to the City, and Barking to Tower Gateway) set to launch on Monday 19 July 2010. · Cycle journeys on London’s major roads are now up by 117 per cent since TfL was created in 2000 and by 14 per cent since April 2008. The Mayor and TfL are working towards a target of increasing the number of cycle journeys made in London by 400 per cent by 2026 (compared to 2000 levels). · The safety of London’s cyclists is a huge priority for the Mayor and TfL which is why we published a Cycle Safety Action Plan earlier this year, outlining all the measures we are taking to improve safety for those taking to two wheels. For more information log on to:  http://www.tfl.gov.uk/roadusers/cycling/13382.aspx · The number of cyclists killed or seriously injured on London’s roads has fallen by 21 per cent over the last decade compared with the Government’s baseline figures from the mid to late 1990s. · TfL provided funding earlier this year to 13 outer London boroughs which has allowed them to produce an action plan for how they will increase cycle journeys in their local areas  to become a biking borough . For more information on TfL’s work to increase cycling in outer London, go to http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/businessandpartners/benefits-of-c... · Four in every ten London residents have access to a bike in their household but around 20 per cent of these bikes go unused (over 250,000 bicycles). · The Mayor’s cycling revolution in the Capital is part of his work to offer Londoners an alternative to the car, helping to tackle pollution and poor air quality and cutting carbon emissions.  · 16 major organisations have signed up to the Mayor’s ten cycling priorities that introduce the Cycling Revolution London document: London Councils Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM)     Sustrans        NLA - the centre for London's built environment British Cycling London First    Bicycle Association     Cycling England Metropolitan Police Service     London Cycling Campaign City of London Police   NHS London      Royal Parks     Freight Transport Association   CTC     Princes Foundation for the Built Environment