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CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Cycling News
City to get new bike hire scheme: Scotland's first velo-city!
(12 posts)-
Posted 12 years ago #
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Not quite the first attempt in Scotland, l hope it has more success than its SW neighbour
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-south-scotland-19634900Posted 12 years ago # -
Glasgow may also get a http://www.bromptondock.co.uk
Posted 12 years ago # -
"
As part of the council's feasibility study, a review of 24 of the schemes worldwide was conducted, including detailed interviews with the city sponsors or operators of 10 schemes.
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Hope that is/will be public info.
Posted 12 years ago # -
Dumfries is many things but it's not a city. Its scheme was doomed from the start, really - it's too small to be really workable, was only ever half-heartedly implemented, and it doesn't solve any obvious problems. Glasgow makes much more sense. What would make real sense would be a Scotland-wide scheme that meant you could step off a train anywhere in Scotland and pick up a hire bike, like the OV-fiets in the Netherlands. Perhaps if NedRail gets the Scotrail franchise ...
Posted 12 years ago # -
"Perhaps if NedRail gets the Scotrail franchise"
If they do I'm sure they'll keep the name Scotrail...
Posted 12 years ago # -
They should get Greggs as main sponsor and set docks outside every shop......
Posted 12 years ago # -
That would actually make a lot of sense - pick up some fuel at the same time as you pick up your bike...
Posted 12 years ago # -
Cycling a mile or two on the flat shouldn't require extra fuel!
Posted 12 years ago # -
"
Barclays Cycle Hire bike rider seriously injured after being struck by lorry
It is believed to be the most serious incident involving a cyclist using one of the bikes since the scheme was launched in July 2010.
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Posted 12 years ago # -
15 or even 30 stations isn't enough to provide adequate coverage in a city as large as Glasgow.
The bikes in London are used an average of 3 times a day. Let's assume this will apply to Glasgow: with 400 bikes, that's 1200 journeys per day. For comparison, there are about 40000 daily journeys on the Subway (which itself pales into insignificance compared to the suburban rail network).
So while this is welcome, we should remember that in the grand scheme of things it doesn't amount to a hill of beans.
Posted 12 years ago # -
You need around 3 types of 'hire' for public bikes - there is the grab & go bike sharing which generally offer a free period and increasing hire charges to encourage bikes to circulate. Modern 4th generation bikes need no docking points (you need 50% more docking points than bikes for a typical system), and they can be reconfigured and added to very easily. One operator has been running as a commercial private operation since 2006 and now runs in 9 European countries. They reckon to be financially sustainable within a couple of years, and like Copenhagen (free bikes operating for 18 years now) the branding of the bikes is sold in blocks to cover the running costs.
There are OV-Fiets (or Bike'n'Go for UK) that Abellio operates mainly aimed at commuters - cost £3-£4/day take bike from station to work and back to station. Their model uses staffed hire points to hire bikes but can be returned after hours. Can use the same bikes as the bike share but on different tariff (like mobile phones). OV-Fiets has grown from a couple of locations in 2006 to over 200 sites and it has a sustainable financial model.
Finally there is the Brompton Dock and longer term bike hire or leasing - it also works for day hire but is less suitable for the bike sharing - grab & go model. This can be an alternative to the Cycle to Work scheme and paid for like a bus or rail season ticket (salary sacrifice). It cuts out the consumer credit and residual value issues, and you get a fully maintained bike, which is renewed when it wears out. A frequent user rate for a Brompton all day is £2.50. Some of the Brompton Docks installed in 2013 are already covering their operating costs. Greenwich University has an internal system as it provides a more immediate and flexible option for inter-site transport than trying to provide a high frequency service with hired coaches. PM me for information on Brompton Dock and other schemes, I've been doing this stuff since Bikeabout in Portsmouth in 1996.
Posted 12 years ago #
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