Bike rentals rolled out to accelerate pedal power

A NEW rent-a-bike project will enable Edinburgh residents to get in the saddle for as little as £1.25 a week.

The city council scheme will see 200 bikes and safety equipment offered for rental along with training in a bid to create a Capital cycling culture.

It may be the first step towards an on-street bike rental scheme like the £140 million project in London, championed by mayor Boris Johnson and sponsored by Barclays.

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If the Edinburgh project gets the go-ahead from councillors next week, a sponsor will be sought to get it up and running, and it could be managed in partnership with organisations such as The Bike Station.

Pricing is yet to be finalised but the scheme is expected to allow city residents to rent new or refurbished cycles for as little as £15 a month or £65 a year.

Cycle campaigners and council chiefs are targeting non-cyclists who are put off by the thought of paying hundreds of pounds to get in the saddle.

Transport leader Gordon Mackenzie said: “People who might quite like to cycle to work, or for fun, are sometimes put off by the upfront costs.

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“This is about providing hassle-free access to bikes so they can see if it’s the right option for them.

“There’s still some work to do on the detail, but this proposal could really help encourage cycling in the city and would support our many other actions to make life on two wheels more attractive for everyone.”

Councillors will vote on the introduction of the scheme this week, which will involve the council providing funds to set up the service.

At least of five per cent of the transport budget for 2012-13 – 70 per cent more than last year – will be spent on cycling, with details of the scheme to be worked out by early summer.

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Ian Maxwell, board member of The Bike Station and spokesman for Lothians cycling group Spokes, said there was expected to be big demand for the service.

He said: “We’ve been involved with a lot of cycle schemes, spoken to thousands of people in the past few years and we know the main barrier to cycling is it’s expensive to buy a bike.

“We know a lot of people who buy a bike from us are only in the city for a few months and so we would welcome the chance to help with all projects that encourage cycling.”

Mr Maxwell added that there were already more cyclists on the roads than ever before and the new rental scheme was a step towards on-street cycle stations.

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He added: “It would be great to see that as an eventual situation. In France, they started with a loan scheme just like this and moved on to the on-street system.

“It’s all about visibility. In London, you see bikes on the street which really stand out. However, the cost is large and one needs to build up to that a step at a time.”

Unlike the Barclays Cycle Hire in London, which is aimed at short one-way journeys and has faced criticism over the cost, the Edinburgh scheme is intended for those who hire them during the summer months or university terms and keep the bikes at home.

The council said various steps to improve the city’s environment for cyclists have been undertaken in recent months.

These included new on-street parking, 20mph limits on more than 50 per cent of the city’s residential streets and the City Centre-King’s Buildings cycle corridor which opens this spring.