Boris sets forth design plans to reshape the capital

Mayor of London Boris Johnson yesterday gave the first sign of his intention to leave a lasting legacy for the design of London’s built environment.

In his opening address at the London Architecture Festival last night, the Mayor added some colour to reports in the weekend press about what his future legacy for shaping the city might look like.

The introduction of ‘bicycle superhighways’ across London, ‘linking up’ the capital’s parks and green spaces, and an open-minded policy towards tall buildings, were among his suggestions for improving the city.

The Mayor’s Office today denied earlier reports that the Mayor would be considering uncovering London’s lost, underground rivers, saying that the idea was purely speculation.

The Mayor’s Office is due to publish a Direction of Travel Document in early July, which will formalise its plans for developing the infrastructure and built environment in the capital.

Under the Greater London Authority Act 1999, the Mayor is required to produce a London Plan to address ‘opportunity areas’ for the capital’s development, such as, urban planning, transport, design policy and the environment.

Boris Johnson outlined his ideas at Somerset House in London, to an audience of largely architectural and creative professionals, to mark the opening of the four-week festival.