Merton Council’s town centre project, ‘Destination Wimbledon’, has won the London Transport Award for ‘Excellence in Walking and Public Realm’.
Beating the competition from six other shortlisted local authorities, Merton Council received the prestigious award in recognition of the ‘Destination Wimbledon’ town centre improvement scheme. Completed ahead of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games last year, the scheme included a public square, wider pavements, improved crossing facilities, high quality paving, lighting, seating, cycle parking and public art.
Organised by the Transport Times, the 10th London Transport Awards hosted over 450 transport professionals and recognised the people making a real difference to transport in London.
Merton Council’s cabinet member for environmental sustainability and regeneration, Councillor Andrew Judge, said: ‘The Destination Wimbledon scheme truly deserves this award as it has transformed Wimbledon town centre to make it a great place for residents, business and visitors to the area. This scheme has demonstrated excellent partnership working with key stakeholders and the local community who were fully involved throughout the project. Well done to everybody who was a part of this success.’
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Notes to editors:
1. About the London Borough of Merton
An outer London borough to the south west of the capital with a population of 200,000 residents living in 80,000 households and served by 7,500 businesses. Formed in 1965, the borough’s five main town centres are Wimbledon (taking in the Village, the Broadway and South Wimbledon), Mitcham, Morden, Raynes Park and Colliers Wood.
Merton is home to the world famous All England Lawn Tennis Club, where the Wimbledon Championships take place every year bringing an extra 500,000 people into the borough for the tennis extravaganza.
In the 13th century, the Statutes of Merton, the basis of common law in England and seen by many as the forerunner for modern parliament, were signed here. In the 19th century Merton was a place of industry where famous names such as Arthur Liberty and William Morris based their businesses on the River Wandle. The Lord Admiral Horatio Nelson also lived in Merton.