Greener transport is on the rise in Merton, new figures suggest.

A report released this week claimed the number of bus passengers in the borough had risen by 25 per cent from 2004 to 2008 - and pedestrian journeys had risen by the same propportion between 2004 and now.

The figures feature in a Merton Council report into its second sustainable transport strategy and Local Implementation Plan (LIP).

Listing the advances made since the launch of the borough’s first transport LIP in 2006, council officers also reported the creation of Mitcham Eastfields Station and the provision of cycle training for more than 3,500 children as signs of success.

They also said the number of children knocked down and killed on Merton’s roads had fallen by 60 per cent since 2006.

The progress report into plans for the borough’s second transport LIP, which will run from 2011 to 2026, was published ahead of a meeting of the council’s street management advisory committee on Tuesday.