Rider Gardens
A supportive infrastructure for London’s delivery rider community which creates public realm benefits for all on the Inner Ring.
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London’s community of delivery riders is expanding rapdily. Deliveroo and UberEats riders informally gather at street-corner ‘zone centres’ whilst ‘dark kitchens’ are appearing to supply them with product. Much of this activity, which does not provide basic amenity for the riders, takes place on the Inner Ring.
Our proposal is in the tradition of the ‘Cabmen’s Shelter’. These shelters emerged on London’s streets in 1875 to provide safe place for cabbies to eat and drink whilst in contact with their vehicles. Many of the shelters still survive in central London, providing teas and coffees to the public via serving hatches whilst also providing cabbie-only dining interiors. Our Rider Gardens work in a similar way, offering both public and rider-only services.
Utilising underused TfL land along the Inner Ring – traffic islands and difficult corners – we propose a network of ‘Rider Gardens’ where the rider community can gather, eat and socialise, served by kiosks providing light meals, warm drinks, first aid, WCs and bicycle repair equipment, delivered as a partnership between the GLA/TfL and the delivery companies.
Wherever they are, the Gardens provide a greening of the wider streetscape, including tree-planting, pedestrian-facing lighting and a more inclusive and diverse public realm.
Context
Rider Gardens was a speculative proposal put forward to the Greater London Authority in 2017. It was made as part of our successful submission to the ADUP2 framework.
Credits
- Client: Greater London Authority
- Dates: 2017
- Status: Speculative Proposal for Greater London Authority
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