Healthy Living

It’s a well-known and extensively documented fact that physical activity can have a positive and substantial impact on a person’s health and wellbeing.

Regular physical activity reduces your chances of death, depression and dementia by 30 per cent and nearly halves your chances of developing Type 2 diabetes.

The Mayor’s key ambition is that by 2041 all Londoners are doing at least 20 minutes of active travel each day to stay healthy. Active travel is one of the most equitable forms of physical activity. It includes walking, wheeling, and cycling, and is also frequently done during trips using public transport.  

Data from 2020/21 and 2021/22 suggest that the proportion of Londoners achieving the target was lower during the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, the percentage of Londoners engaged in 20 minutes of active travel dropped from 42 per cent in 2019/2020 to 35 per cent during the pandemic. However, the latest data from 2022/23 suggests these figures are slowly rising, with 38 per cent of Londoners now involved.

Moreover, the latest TfL Travel in London report found that in 2023 more people are cycling than before the pandemic, an increase of 20 per cent from 2019. Walking continues to be central to how many people travel in London, with levels noticeably higher than before the pandemic.  

The Mayor, Transport for London and the boroughs are working hard to make walking, cycling and using public transport more appealing and accessible to all Londoners. Here’s some of the ways that they are doing it:

• The Healthy Streets approach underpins TfL’s work on active travel. To date, over 500 School Streets have been created across London and road danger has been reduced with the introduction of 20 mph speed limits on over half of London’s streets.
• The network of cycling lanes has been rapidly increased, from 90 kilometres in 2016 to over 350 kilometres in 2023 This means that 24 per cent of Londoners now live within 400 metres of a high-quality cycle route. That’s more than triple what it was in 2016!
• Through its latest Business Plan (2024/25), TfL has committed  £150m per-year in funding until 2026 for safe and active travel schemes, which will be uplifted with inflation in 25/26. This funding will help expand London’s cycle network and increase the number of safer junctions, school streets and cycle parking facilities.
• In March 2023, the Mayor unveiled plans for the Superloop – a new bus network that circles outer London and connects key town centres, hospitals and transport hubs, faster. The Superloop has now launched, providing further alternatives to driving in London, helping to protect London’s air and enhancing outer London bus networks. Find out more about the Superloop.