The Mayor of London has revealed he is keen to extend his “Boris Bike” cycle hire scheme out to Battersea.

Boris Johnson was presented with a detailed proposal why the initiative should reach into the borough just minutes before he admitted he was keen on the idea.

The submission was made by Battersea’s MP, Jane Ellison, with detailed input from the Wandsworth Cycling Campaign (WCC) as the Mayor made his way into a People’s Question Time event at Battersea Arts Centre last Tuesday.

During the two hour question and answer session he and members of the Greater London Assembly held, Mr Johnson expressed his support for extending the hire scheme out of central London and into the south-west of the city.

He said: “Of course, we want to extend it here, I want to see more of the big blue bicycles going along cycle super highway seven all the way down here as well.”

Responding to his comments, Ms Ellison said: “There is a compelling case for extending the Barclays Cycle Hire scheme into Battersea - there are plenty of suitable locations and dozens of docking stations north and east of Battersea to connect up with.

“Having the ‘Boris Bikes’ here would improve the quality of life in our area and open up more travel options in and through Battersea.”

Susie Morrow, WCC campaigns coordinator added: “The success of the Barclays Cycle Hire scheme is down to people wanting to get from ‘a to b’ in the most convenient way possible and this is increasingly proving to be by bike.

“WCC would like cycling in Wandsworth to be a natural transport choice for everyone and bringing the hire scheme to Battersea brings that one step closer.”

The proposal to extend the Barclays Cycle Hire scheme into Wandsworth is also backed by Richard Tracey, London Assembly Member for Merton and Wandsworth, Wandsworth Council and Wandsworth Friends of the Earth.

• What do you think? Let us know by emailing imason@london.newsquest.co.uk or leave a comment below.