Tag: Transport for Edinburgh

City cycle hire scheme: council to set up team to look at options

Work towards reintroducing a cycle hire scheme in Edinburgh has begun, along with plans for shorter term measures to support cycling initiatives in the Capital.

A report to Transport and Environment Committee on Thursday (11 November) proposes establishing a project team to explore options for replacing the popular Edinburgh Cycle Hire Scheme (ECHS), which provided almost half a million trips in its three-year term.

As well as learning lessons from the first contract with Serco, a series of objectives for any new initiative have been recommended. These include the need for bikes to be adaptive and accessible, for communities to be involved in proposals and to seek to increase use by low participation groups, particularly those who are economically or socially disadvantaged.

Several short-term actions are proposed to mitigate the impact of the previous cycle hire scheme ending. Amongst these are the expansion of the Cargo Bike Movement, letting members of the public, local businesses and organisations loan cargo bikes, and investment in Brake the Cycle, which supports offenders to repair and restore donated bikes for reuse.

Medium-term it is also recommended that officers explore a city bike club in partnership with retailers and other relevant organisations.

Councillor Lesley Macinnes, Transport and Environment Convener, said: “The Edinburgh Cycle Hire Scheme was an extremely welcome addition in Edinburgh, judging by the many people who made use of it, and opened up cycling as a convenient, accessible mode of transport to a whole new audience.

“It was really disappointing that we weren’t able to find a way forward with the previous contract, despite our best efforts, but as we look to a future scheme, I’m confident we can deliver an even better replacement suited to the needs of the city.”

Councillor Karen Doran, Transport and Environment Vice Convener, said: “I know many people will be delighted that we’re making moves toward an inclusive, community-led replacement for the cycle hire scheme.

“As we work to develop this our short-term measures will help those who need support to access a bike.”

Edinburgh’s first cycle hire scheme, operated by Serco, ran from 2018 to 2021 at no cost to the Council. Despite negotiations considering various options, an extension to the contract could not be agreed and, unfortunately, the scheme closed at midnight on 17 September.

During 2020, ECHS was the fastest growing scheme in Britain, with 234,500 trips made, expanding across the city and attracting users from different backgrounds. It is recognised that its availability helped to normalise and promote cycling amongst the public, aligning with the need to shift towards more sustainable modes of transport and supporting net zero carbon goals.

Based on the first contract it is suggested that a financial subsidy from the Council will be required for a future scheme. Analysis by Transport for Edinburgh highlights other matters for consideration, including clearly defined aims and objectives, the need to minimise opportunities for vandalism of bikes and infrastructure and integration with buses and trams.

If approved, a project team would be formed to carry out research and engagement with stakeholders, elected members and local communities to gather views on objectives and the options for delivering them. This work would then form the basis of recommendations to a future committee.

Read the full report, Edinburgh Cycle Hire Scheme – future delivery and interim community initiatives, on the Council website.

You can watch the discussion at Transport and Environment Committee live via webcast from 10am on Thursday, 11 November.

End of the road for Just Eat Cycles

An announcement from Just Eat Cycles:

It is with great sadness that we announce today that Edinburgh Cycle Hire will close on 17 September 2021. We know how disappointing this announcement is for our many regular users.

Unfortunately, the contract to provide a cycle hire service to the City has come to an end, so we are unable to continue. The scheme will continue to operate until midnight on 17 September 2021, at which point the service will stop.

All annual and extended period passes which have been purchased and have a remainder of time left on them will be refunded automatically with any balance after 17 September 2021.

Over the coming days we will share more information about the closure, including when certain stations will close.

The scheme has run under a three-year agreement between Serco and Transport for Edinburgh, and in that time has made a great impact on Edinburgh’s sustainable transport network, with hundreds of thousands of trips made on our bikes since 2018.

Since then 70,000 unique users have cycled over 450,000 trips, replacing millions of miles of combustion engine transport with a green travel alternative.

Council Leaders have expressed disappointment at the end of the contract between Transport for Edinburgh and Serco to run the city’s cycle hire scheme.

The Council is investigating alternative options to replace the popular scheme.

Council Leader Adam McVey said: “We are very disappointed that Serco have opted to walk away from the popular shared bike hire scheme in Edinburgh. When the bike hire scheme was first introduced the commitment was to operate it with no public funding and it is highly regrettable that Serco will not continue the scheme on that basis. 

“We recognise that the bike hire scheme has helped more people get access to bikes, enjoying the benefits of fast, reliable, healthier journeys around town. The withdrawal of Serco will come as a frustrating shock to many regular users of the bike hire scheme.

“It sends absolutely the wrong message at a time when so many of us are deeply concerned about the climate emergency and what we can each do to combat the effects of human activity. Choosing to travel by bike is one of the easiest changes many of us can make.

“We’re now working on a replacement bike hire scheme for the Capital. We are actively pursuing options to ensure that a replacement scheme is in place as quickly as possible.”

Depute Council Leader Cammy Day said: “Over the past few years it’s been a welcome sight to see residents, students and visitors making journeys from A to B across Edinburgh by hire bike and they’ve become a key part of our sustainable transport infrastructure in the city. It’s a huge disappointment the scheme’s coming to an end.

“The city will share our huge disappointment that the scheme is  coming to an end and that Serco have walked away form a key part of the city’s active travel plans. We will now engage with the cycling community to look at alternative innovative scheme to get people back on the bikes.”

‘Walked away’? Not at all, say Serco. The Serco absolutely refute the council leaders’ claims, and maintain it is the COUNCIL ITSELF that is to blame for the ditching of the scheme.

Serco’s micromobility director Sam Jones, said: “We’re disappointed that we have been unable to find a way to continue the Edinburgh bike scheme.

“We have explored every route possible to find extension options beyond our original three-year contract which expires on 17 September 2021. Those efforts continued through to last week when the council advised us that they were not able to extend the current contract.

“Serco has been running the scheme since September 2018 under a three-year concession. Despite the scheme making a loss over that time we have not walked away and we have stood by our commitments and continued to make a success of the scheme for the city’s people and visitors.

“As was reported in May 2021, funding options were being explored which would have enabled the scheme to carry on – however we were informed two weeks ago that City of Edinburgh Council has been unable to confirm those plans.”

More than half a million journeys were made by over 70,000 users during the life of the bike hire project. During 2020, when the Edinburgh Cycle Hire Scheme was the fastest growing scheme in Britain, there were with 234,500 trips made. 

In 2020 the scheme also won the award for Cycling, Walking and Public Realm at the Scottish Transport Awards.

Plans to reform Edinburgh’s public transport companies

Recommendations for the reform of Edinburgh’s Transport Arm’s Length External Organisations (ALEOs) would deliver a more efficient, better integrated public transport offering while retaining the identities of the Capital’s much-loved transport companies, according to a new report.

Reform of Transport Arm’s Length External Organisations, to be considered by the council’s Transport and Environment Committee on Thursday (19 August), proposes reconstituting the Lothian Buses legal entity to allow the management of all Council-owned public transport modes in the city, while retaining the brands and operational services of each of the transport companies.

While the changes wouldn’t result in any immediate changes for passengers or front-line staff, they would lead to improvements through easier ticket purchasing, integrated routes and customer services plus better collaboration and less competition between companies, as well as efficiencies for the business.

Proposals have been informed by a working group formed of Council officers and Non-Executive Director representatives from each of the Transport ALEOs (Lothian Buses, Edinburgh Trams and Transport for Edinburgh).

They’ve been working to a set of guiding and transition principles, which include creating a customer focused unified public transport approach through service integration, route optimisation and fare ticketing optimisation.

Councillor Lesley Macinnes, Transport and Environment Convener, said: “The reform of our Transport ALEOs offers the chance to significantly enhance and streamline our public transport offering to the benefit of the public. These changes would result in integrated ticketing and routing and the opportunity to expand into new transport modes , amongst other improvements.

“Of course, we know how important the Lothian Buses and Edinburgh Trams brands are to the people of Edinburgh, demonstrated by their consistently high customer satisfaction ratings, and we’ve no plans to change that. Any restructuring behind-the-scenes will only lead to a better experience when using the services we all know and love.”

Councillor Karen Doran, Transport and Environment Vice Convener, said: “The last year and a half has been extremely challenging for our public transport providers. Our plans for their future aim to support their continued recovery, delivering efficiency savings which can be reinvested in the services.

“We really value the public transport staff who’ve made every effort during this time to serve the city too, and we would be working closely with boards, management and trade unions to support a smooth transition to a new structure.”

A report to Policy and Sustainability Committee in July 2020 set out arrangements for the management of the Council’s Transport ALEOs, highlighting challenges and setting out objectives for future public transport provision.

As well as supporting public transport integration, a reformed structure could respond to new opportunities as they arise and facilitate mobility across the city and region. ALEO reform also aligns with Edinburgh’s City Mobility Plan, which outlines greater integration in areas like pricing, ticketing and routing, as well as expansion of the rapid transit system and a bus network review.

In addition, the commercial sustainability of any new arrangement is considered crucial, particularly given the likely recovery period for public transport in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Efficiency savings as a result of reform are particularly important.

If the proposed Transport ALEO is approved, the Council would maintain formal political oversight through the existing committee structure.

Read the full report, Reform of Transport Arm’s Length External Organisations, on the Council website.

You can watch discussion of the report by Transport and Environment Committee live from 10am on Thursday, 19 August via webcast.

I remember there has been opposition to this in the past. Back in 2016 concerns were raised that Lothian Buses profits would be used to plug the black hole that was Edinburgh Trams finances, to the detriment of the popular and efficient bus company. Changed days? We’ll see how the Capital Coalition ‘fares’ next week – Ed.

Edinburgh Cycle Hire customers pedal 1.5 million kilometers

Yesterday – Clean Air Day – Edinburgh Cycle Hire announced that their customers have cycled a staggering 1,500,000km, pedalling around the Earth nearly 38 times!

A recent study undertaken by scientists at Oxford University found that those who switch just one trip per day from car-driving to cycling reduced their carbon footprint by about 0.5 tonnes over a year.

In 2020 Edinburgh Cycle Hire Scheme totalled 234,470 trips, almost double from the previous year.  In one day alone 1,438 people used the scheme.  So far in 2021 nearly 60,000 trips have been made with the summer period expected to busy again with locals using the scheme as part of their staycation.   

With access to bikes being one of the biggest challenges to cycling, the scheme is planning to upgrade its hire points later this year, as well as reviewing the network to meet the growing customer demand.  

The new infrastructure is already being used within the Transport for West Midlands scheme and is a hit with customers.   This work is supported with funding from Sustrans and the City of Edinburgh Council.

George Lowder, Chief Executive of Transport for Edinburgh said: “The Edinburgh scheme is key to supporting our city’s sustainability and active travel plans, cutting emissions and congestion.  

“Providing access to bikes in an easy to use, affordable and safe way will encourage people to leave the car at home and take shorter journeys by bike.”

Alex MacDonald, General Manager of the scheme said: “We’re gearing up for another busy summer and we’ll have more bikes available across the city.  

“Customers can explore on our e-bikes and pedal bikes by simply downloading the app and finding their nearest hire point.”

John Lauder, Deputy CEO Sustrans and National Director, Sustrans Scotland said: “Studies have found that switching from the car to cycling, even just for one day a week can make a real difference to reducing personal carbon emissions from transport.  

“Cycle hire schemes, like Edinburgh’s makes cycling more visible, and more normal.  Cycle hires remove the first barrier to making that decision to cycle, and help people understand how convenient and easy cycling is.  It’s the first small step to changing habits that can make a huge difference.”

Edinburgh Cycle Hire reports 119% growth over 12 months

Edinburgh Cycle Hire has reported growth of 119% between September 2019 and 2020. Over 221,000 trips were made during that time, eclipsing growth reported by other UK cycle schemes and the record set by the company last year.

The scheme has seen exponential growth with average trips per day up by 46%. This is due in part to the 75 new hire stations installed at sites across the city including Montgomery Street and Belford Road next to the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art (Modern One) and Dean Gallery.

Other sites included West Crosscauseway, Corstorphine Road and Craigleith Road. These are areas previously not served by a cycle scheme and is part of a strategy to create a cycling network for the city as an alternative to short car journeys.

New users to Edinburgh Cycle Hire have totalled more than 34,000 bringing the overall to 57,000 customers cycling in and around the city. Earlier in 2020 the popular scheme was extended into South Queensferry with start/end journeys totally nearly 4,500 in the first six months and 1,500 new customers joining the scheme. Proving that cycle hire can function as a public transport service, as well as improving inner city connectivity.

George Lowder, Chief Executive, Transport for Edinburgh said: “What makes this performance truly outstanding is that this growth encompasses a period when the country was in lockdown, with homeworking, no Festivals and few visitors in The City.  

“The people of Edinburgh have embraced cycling and we will continue to strive to grow the scheme to meet with this increasing demand.”

Alex Macdonald, General Manager Serco said: “We’d like to thank our customers to the moon and back for making the positive choice to cycle.

“Coincidently the one million kilometres our customers have ridden would take them from the moon, to earth and back again.”

Cllr Lesley Mcinnes, Transport and Environment Convenor, the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “Edinburgh Cycle Hire has proved itself to be an accessible and easy alternative to travelling by car and is a vital part of the city’s sustainable transport network, providing another useful choice of how to get around in Edinburgh.“

The scheme has not been without its challenges: theft and vandalism has been an issue with bikes stolen and dumped in public places and damage to hire points.

Further investment has been made to the cycle hire’s infrastructure to deter this type of anti-social behaviour and maintain the scheme’s sustainability.  However, this impacts on delivering services across the city, especially in areas where cycling could become a more accessible mode of transport for many communities.

A partnership has been created with Police Scotland to support efforts to recover stolen bikes and prosecute those who choose to damage the scheme’s infrastructure.

Chief Inspector Neil Wilson, Police Scotland said: “Police Scotland, Edinburgh City Division has been working in close partnership with the Edinburgh Cycle Hire Scheme (ECHS) to address theft of their fleet and vandalism to their infrastructure.

“We have undertaken crime prevention surveys of hire stations throughout the city and we will support ECHS in the implementation of enhanced security measures. Our officers have been briefed on how to spot a stolen bike and regularly undertake targeted patrolling, which has resulted in numerous apprehensions and prosecutions.

“We will continue to develop our approach in partnership with ECHS and would encourage the public to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity involving the cycle hire network to police.”

To bring cycling to the community the scheme was awarded funding from SP Energy Networks’ Green Economy Fund and Funding by Smarter Choices Smarter Places, which is Paths for All’s programme to increase active and sustainable travel throughout Scotland.

The programme is grant-funded by Transport Scotland.  The cycle scheme will implement an outreach programme to help people make the choice to walk or cycle for short local journeys, and to encourage groups who were reluctant to cycle feel confident getting on a bike.  

In March Edinburgh Cycle Hire took ownership of an additional 68 ebikes through eBike Grant Fund, delivered by Energy Saving Trust and funded by Transport Scotland.  These have been a popular choice with nearly 21,000 trips made.  Feedback has shown a broader demographic of uptake for ebikes, especially amongst older users, proving that you never really forget how to ride a bike. 

During the summer Edinburgh Cycle Hire, in partnership with Sustrans and funding from Transport Scotland responded to the Covid-19 pandemic by providing free passes to NHS Workers to support them with their essential work.   

With increasing demand for the scheme, Edinburgh Cycle Hire’s future looks set to continue in a positive direction as the city continues to seek out ways to improve its connectivity in a sustainable way.

Find out more about Edinburgh Cycle Hire online.

Cycle hire offer to NHS staff extended

Transport for Edinburgh has announced the release of an additional 250 four-month passes for Edinburgh Cycle Hire (Just Eat Bikes) for NHS staff

Developed in partnership with Sustrans Scotland and Edinburgh Cycle Hire operators Serco, the scheme has been made possible with funding through Sustrans’ Partnership Programme, supported by Transport Scotland.

Since the end of April 2020, 100 NHS workers have been benefiting from the first phase of the programme using free annual passes. These have supported NHS staff throughout the Lothian area, and provided a healthy way to travel for essential journeys and for work during the Covid-19 crisis.

Recognising the success of the 100 passes, and building upon the support demonstrated for the scheme through over-subscription to the first phase, a further 250 passes are being made available to NHS Lothian employees.

The new four-month Edinburgh Cycle Hire passes can be applied for by emailing a request to support@edinburchcyclehire.com using an NHS email address (@nhslothian.scot.nhs.uk or @nhs.net).

The passes will provide workers with a code to load into the Edinburgh Cycle Hire App, allowing them free access to use both pedal and e-bikes up to 60 minutes per ride for the first two months from date of issue. The final two months of the four-month pass will revert to pedal bikes only up to 60 minutes per ride free. E-bike trips will then cost 10p per minute.

George Lowder, Chief Executive, Transport for Edinburgh said: “We are delighted to have secured a second tranche of funding from Scottish Government via Sustrans, to provide further support for up to 250 NHS Staff in Edinburgh, giving them four months free access to the scheme and then an opportunity to remain members of the scheme at less than half the price of an annual pass.”

Ross Miller, Senior Transport Integration Officer at Sustrans Scotland said: “After seeing such a positive response to the first phase of this programme, we are delighted to provide funding to support a further 250 NHS Lothian staff in making happier and healthier journey choices.

“These four-month passes, combined with reduced price membership renewal, offer a healthy and convenient transportation choice, and we hope that by giving more of our vital NHS staff the chance to access the scheme, more staff members will adopt changes in the way they choose to travel which will last beyond this pandemic.”

Alex Macdonald, General Manager of Just Eat Cycles, said: “We want to thank all NHS employees for their incredible efforts and the sacrifices they continue to make.

“Our network is proving to be a lifeline for many people during these unprecedented times with many essential workers using the bikes to travel to and from places of work. We hope these additional NHS Passes can go some way to support NHS employees during what is an incredibly challenging time.”

Free bike passes for NHS staff

Transport for Edinburgh’s Cycle Hire Scheme (Just Eat Cycles) are delighted to announce the release of 100 free annual passes for NHS staff today (Tuesday, 5 May 2020).

Developed in partnership with Sustrans Scotland and Edinburgh Cycle Hire operators Serco, the scheme has been made possible by funding from Transport Scotland through Sustrans’ Partnership programme.

NHS employees interested in accessing the 12 month pass should use their NHS email address (@nhslothian.scot.nhs.uk or @nhs.net), and send an email to support@edinburghcyclehire.com by June 22nd 2020.

They will then be sent a code to redeem through the Just Eat Cycles app, which is free to download for iOS and Android. Passes, which cover both e-bikes and pedal bikes, will be allocated on a first come first serve basis.

Until 4 July, 2020 the NHS passes will cover the use of e-bikes and pedal bikes for free up to 60 minutes per ride. After the initial two months the pass will revert to a normal annual membership for the remaining ten months. E-Bike trips will then cost 10p per minute.

George Lowder, Chief Executive of Transport for Edinburgh said: “Transport for Edinburgh are delighted that Transport Scotland have provided funding to allow access to The Edinburgh Cycle Hire Scheme for NHS staff who are fulfilling such vital roles at this time.”

Sustrans Scotland Director, Karen McGregor, said: “In the Covid-19 crisis, cycling can offer a healthy and convenient transportation choice for many.

“And so long as the 2m social distancing is observed, it can help people keep a safe physical distance from others. We are delighted to be able to provide funding to support NHS staff with their travel during the pandemic.

Alex Macdonald, General Manager of Just Eat Cycles, said: “We want to thank all NHS employees for their incredible efforts on the frontline.

“It is a privilege to support these people with free access to e-bikes and pedal bikes during the current crisis – we hope it provides some respite to those working hardest to keep us all safe.

Council Leader Adam McVey said: “This is a fantastic initiative, which will support NHS staff doing the crucial job of keeping us safe to take advantage of cycling as a healthy way of travelling and exercising.

“We’re currently working to implement changes around the city to give people more space to stay 2m apart while cycling, and I’m delighted this will also benefit those participating in this scheme.”

Frank Mitchell, Chief Executive of SP Energy Networks, who have provided funding for cycle hire stations, added: “We’re extremely grateful for the work NHS staff and other key workers are doing during this pandemic.

“We’re really proud the funding from SP Energy Networks has allowed Transport for Edinburgh to expand its Edinburgh Cycle Hire scheme and install more hire points, which help our essential workers travel to and from work around the city in a green and healthy way that supports the official Scottish Government and NHS guidance.

“This is just one of the ways we’re supporting our NHS during the Covid-19 crisis and I’m sure it will make a real difference for those who can benefit from the scheme.”

PIC: Greg Mcvean