News Articles Archive - Cross River Partnership

CRP are delighted to welcome Maisha Anam to the team! Maisha will be joining CRP for a 6-month graduate placement as part of Westminster City Council’s Graduate Programme. Hear from Maisha on what inspired her to join CRP.

“Having been born and raised in London, as well as completing my studies here, I’ve always felt a strong connection to the city. After completing my undergraduate degree at King’s College London in International Development, with a key focus in environmental development, it has become even more important to me to play a part in helping London become the best it can be.

I’m really looking forward to the next 6 months with CRP, as their initiatives align closely with my passion for creating a greener and more sustainable city for everyone. I’m excited to work in a collaborative environment with the team and to get involved in meaningful projects that help drive positive change across London!”

Throughout Spring, CRP have been busy developing campaigns showing all of the excellent work that our Healthy Streets Everyday II partners are doing, as part of our Mayor’s Air Quality Funded programme.

Late March saw the release of our Collaboration & Co-Design campaign, showcasing ways that our HSE II partners have worked with communities to create greener, safer and more vibrant places for walking, cycling, wheeling and scooting.

Collaboration is where organisations work together by bringing expertise and ideas to achieve a shared goal.

Co-design is a process where creators and end‑users work together as equal partners to shape solutions – designing streets with people, not just for them.

When we collaborate with a wide range of stakeholders and users of our streets, it creates opportunities to unlock spaces for the community, helping to improve air quality by encouraging active travel and reducing over-dependence on private motor vehicles.

Do also keep an eye on our LinkedIn page for the upcoming campaign, Walk This May! Coinciding with May’s National Walking Month, Walk This May will help to encourage more people to walk by sharing its’ newly created walking routes that align with existing and future delivery on the Healthy Streets Everyday II programme in London.

For more information on our Healthy Streets Everyday II programme, please contact CRP Sustainable Transport Manager Ross Phillips.

CRP is excited to start a new project with Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust evaluating how e‑bikes are supporting their clinical teams. The Trust introduced e‑bikes to help staff travel to patients’ homes more efficiently, reduce emissions and give colleagues a healthier, more enjoyable way to move between visits. Our work will help the Trust understand the benefits so far and identify practical opportunities to strengthen and expand the initiative.

The project will bring together insights from staff, journey information and observations from on‑site visits to support the Trust in shaping the next phase of its active travel activity, ensuring any future rollout is safe, inclusive and well‑supported across teams.

In doing so, we hope to help the Trust create smoother, healthier, more sustainable ways for staff to reach patients and deliver care across the community.

Visit our newly launched project page 👉 https://crossriverpartnership.org/projects/gstt-e-bike-evaluation/

The Mayor of London is preparing a framework to futureproof London’s long-term logistics needs, to support housing growth, improve productivity and deliver good growth, including how the Greater London Authority (GLA) and Transport for London (TfL) will support this sector.

The London Growth Plan already sets out a clear vision for how our city’s economy will thrive in the years to come and deliver on ambitious targets to build the homes that Londoners need.

A world class, robust and resilient logistics sector is needed to support the industries that will deliver this vision, deliver growth and housing and support decarbonisation in the face of climate change.

With the publication of the Growth Plan, work is now underway across private and public sectors to understand the long-term logistics needs of London’s economy and identify opportunities for innovation. Areas of focus include productivity improvement and emissions reduction through cutting-edge technology to support London’s target to be net zero by 2030, ensure associated pressures from growth are managed sustainably, and underpin planning policy in London and TfL’s work related to the sector.

Noting the specific focus of the Logistics Plan on productivity and growth, the Logistics Plan will not replace the 2019 Freight and Servicing Action Plan but will complement it.

Please see the Logistics Plan web page here:

London Logistics Plan 2026: progress update | London City Hall

The draft objectives of the Logistics Plan are as follows:

Productivity – To improve the efficiency and reliability of London’s logistics system by optimising freight networks, improving kerbside loading and delivery space management, capturing the benefits of new technology, data tools, and innovative operational practices.
Inclusion – To reduce work‑related road risk for delivery drivers and riders, and support fair, safe, and improved working conditions across the logistics workforce.
Green growth – To enable faster uptake of zero emission vehicles (ZEV) within the sector, and support a transition to alternative, more sustainable, logistics modes, including rail, water, cargo bike and deliveries on foot.
A global capital – To strengthen London’s position as a world‑leading logistics hub by supporting continued investment, innovation, and sector development, contributing to national productivity and export growth.

The Logistics Plan will develop these objectives further and include a suite of key performance indicators (KPIs) to allow monitoring progress against these objectives.

Logistics is an enabler of growth, and London is ready to grow. A strong and sustainable logistics sector will be a vital enabler of this growth and the delivery of world-class infrastructure for Londoners. By developing the Logistics Plan, the GLA and TfL will affirm their support for the sector, to enable housing growth, improve productivity and deliver good growth.

Over the coming months, the GLA and TfL will continue to work on the delivery of the Logistics Plan, working first to complete the engagement and issue definition, followed by proposal development and testing. It is expected that the publication date will be in late 2026.

Cross River Partnership looks forward to supporting the development of the Plan, including feeding into findings from its 2025 London Freight Flows Study undertaken with Steer consultants: https://crossriverpartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/CRP-London-Freight-Flows-Study-Executive-Summary.pdf

Cross River Partnership (CRP) is delighted to highlight the inspiring circular economy work being led by our partner Team London Bridge, which is helping local businesses reduce waste and unlock value through collaboration.

As part of their Towards Zero Waste strategy, Team London Bridge is championing a practical, place‑based approach to circularity that focuses on reuse, redistribution and keeping materials in use for longer. An example of this work is a Materials Exchange WhatsApp group which enables businesses to quickly share surplus items with others nearby, supported by platforms such as A Good Thing, OLIO, Plan Zheroes and Too Good To Go. In just nine months, the initiative has delivered impressive results: over 400 items reused by 40 organisations, with more than 70% of offered goods successfully rehomed.

Team London Bridge has also celebrated circular innovation through its Sustainability Awards, showcasing reuse and resource efficiency across sectors including healthcare, retail, construction and transport.

Team London Bridge are now embarking on a place-based circular economy action plan for London Bridge. Found out how to get involved: Turning Trash to Treasure in London Bridge – Team London Bridge

At Cross River Partnership (CRP), we believe solving London’s complex environmental challenges requires “unusual” partnerships. By bringing together sectors that rarely share a table, we are unlocking innovative solutions for transport, health, and climate resilience.

An example is our work with Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust (GSTT). By analysing e-bike trials for clinicians making home visits, we are bridging transport and healthcare; cutting emissions while improving staff wellbeing. Similarly, our collaboration with the CARICE network at King’s College London ensures our JUST STREETS projects are designed with the resilience of an ageing population in mind.

We also pride ourselves on building ambitious coalitions to tackle emerging risks. For the ‘H3LIOS’ initiative, CRP united UCL, Westminster City Council’s Social Care team, and European partners to design a systemic response to extreme heat in e.g. care homes in London. This collaboration created a vital blueprint for how social care and urban planning can work together to protect vulnerable residents.

Innovation also happens on the kerbside. Our Walking Freight trial saw a groundbreaking collaboration between UPS, Camden Council, the Met Police, and retailer Heal’s, setting a new precedent for sustainable last-mile logistics. From installing rain gardens with John Lewis to the Rubens Hotel living wall via Greening the BIDs, we continue to prove that the best solutions are found by connecting the dots between sectors like health, logistics, and the built environment.

Do you have a project that needs a fresh perspective or an “unusual” partner? We are always looking for new ways to collaborate.

Reach out to the CRP team to explore how we can work together.

Earth Day: Working Together for a Greener London

Celebrated worldwide on 22 April, Earth Day is a reminder of the importance of protecting our environment and taking collective action. At Cross River Partnership (CRP), partnership working is central to delivering cleaner, greener and more resilient places across London.

CRP brings together local authorities, business improvement districts, businesses and communities to tackle shared environmental challenges, from improving air quality and promoting sustainable travel to enhancing green infrastructure and supporting low‑carbon business practices. These projects show how place‑based collaboration can deliver real environmental benefits while supporting thriving urban areas.

Earth Day also highlights that sustainability is a shared responsibility. Small actions, when taken together, can make a significant difference. CRP is proud to work with partners to make these changes possible and to help London continue its journey towards a greener future.

We are delighted to share that Cross River Partnership (CRP) has been awarded the Best Freight & Logistics Decarbonisation Award at the inaugural Decarbonising Transport Awards 2026, hosted by Landor Links.

This recognition celebrates our innovative Waterloo Freight Hub Trial, which has transformed unused space beneath Waterloo Station into a thriving low‑emission logistics hub demonstrating a new model for sustainable urban freight.

The Waterloo Freight Hub Trial has shown that cleaner, smarter freight delivery is not only possible but already making a measurable difference. Key achievements include:

📦 Over 20,000 parcels delivered
🚲 Over 4,600 km travelled by cargo bike
🌱 Over 2,500 kg of CO₂ emissions saved

These outcomes highlight the power of collaboration and innovation in creating greener, healthier cities.

Winning this award strengthens our momentum as we move towards the next phase: developing a Multi‑Modal Waterloo Freight Hub that will deliver even greater environmental, social, and economic benefits for London.

This trial’s success has only been possible thanks to the support and collaboration of Network Rail, the London Borough of Lambeth, the Department for Transport, London and Continental Railways, Delivery Mates, Steer, Intermodality and Waterloo Station.

CRP is pleased to be featured in Green Fleet magazine, highlighting our practical, real world approach to transforming urban freight. The article Reinventing urban delivery through realworld practice showcases how CRP works with boroughs, BIDs and businesses to deliver cleaner, more efficient freight solutions across London.

The article spotlights a range of CRP’s freight pilots including the Pimlico Micro Logistics Hub with Westminster City Council. This real world trial demonstrated the value of zero emission deliveries, with e-cargo bikes travelling 22,578 km and helping avoid an estimated 4,186 kg of CO₂; evidence of both operational and environmental benefits.

We encourage partners to read the full feature and explore how these proven models can support healthier, more sustainable deliveries citywide – GREENFLEET 163 | GREENFLEET

CRP are continuing to champion freight on the Thames and other waterways to support more efficient and sustainable freight.

The past few months has seen CRP attend the Sustainable Construction Partners Reception at the House of Commons Terrace Pavilion, hosted on behalf of Kevin McKenna MP. This brought together leaders from across the construction, infrastructure, and logistics sectors to discuss the future of UK construction and the vital role ports can play in enabling more efficient and sustainable project delivery.

CRP have also contributed to discussions around The staggering state of freight in London through the London Assembly’s Transport Committee, providing expertise through delivering innovative, sustainable logistics projects on the river including transporting parcels and construction tool hire using the river as part of the London Light Freight River Trial.

The discussions have all highlighted how collaboration between across public and private sectors, incorporating ports, couriers and logistics operators, construction partners, local authorities, strategic agencies, central government and infrastructure projects will be essential in delivering lower carbon supply chains and resilient logistics routes across the UK.

If you’d like to hear more about how CRP can support you to make deliveries by river, reach out to CRP Senior Programme Manager Fiona Coull.

Archives: News Articles

CRP Welcomes New Team Member

Collaboration & Co-Design Campaign & Walk This May for National Walking Month

CRP begins new e-bike assessment project with GSTT

London Logistics Plan 2026: Progress Update

Driving Circular Economy Action in London Bridge

Bridging Sectors to Drive Change Across London

Earth Day

CRP Wins Decarbonising Transport Award 2026

CRP Featured in Green Fleet: Reinventing Urban Delivery

Freight on the Thames