Birmingham is offering a massive 5,000 bike giveaway in a desperate bid to get people to take to pedal power as part of a 拢24.3 million 鈥渃ycle revolution鈥
The ambitious plan which won 拢17 million of funding from the Department for Transport last summer, will see 2,000 brand new bikes given away free and 20 community hire hubs launched around the city.
A further 2,000 bikes will be up for grabs on a cost-free long-term hire basis for six to 12 months, while 1,000 more will be held at the local hubs for day hire and short term loans.
The initiative, named Big Birmingham Bikes, will offer bicycles to anyone living in a priority area who has a Birmingham Leisure Card and agrees to attend a cycle proficiency course.
Locating the hubs at leisure centres and parks (in the city centre, Selly Oak, Hodge Hill, Ladywood, Yardley, Hall Green, Northfield and Perry Barr), the council says the scheme is targeting neighbourhoods in deprived communities, aiming to upskill potential cyclists with cycle proficiency and bike maintenance training, while improving access to employment and education as well as boosting health.
A project sponsor is being sought in Birmingham鈥檚 business community to support the scheme, with the council offering to brand bikes with the sponsor鈥檚 logo or colours.
But Big Birmingham Bikes project manager John Carrigan says there will be no similarity to London鈥檚 blue 鈥淏oris bikes鈥 which are sponsored by Barclays.
He said: 鈥淚t鈥檚 nothing like the London scheme. We鈥檙e not looking at the heavy, bulky Boris bikes. Ours are going to be quality hybrids.
鈥淚 want the best bikes I can get so that people want them and enjoy using them.
鈥淭hey will be colour coded bespoke to the project. There will be no sticky labels. They鈥檒l be made to specification with all the logos on the bikes properly.鈥
Each hub, which will be open seven days a week and run by paid instructors with support from volunteers, will offer a programme of activities including cycle training and led rides.
The council is expected to work with Birmingham鈥檚 current cycling champions to roll out the scheme, with support from Centro and BikeRight as well as Northfield Ecocentre in the south and Sustrans in the east.
The contract for the supply of the bikes is currently in tender and expected to be awarded in mid July.
A separate scheme, funded with 拢90,000 secured by London Midland from the Department for Transport and 拢50,000 from the city council, is expected to see state-of-the-art folding bikes installed at city centre railway stations for onward travel by rail commuters.
The 拢800 Brompton bikes will be available for hire at 拢2.50 a day, with 20 stored at New Street, 20 at Moor Street and a further 20 at Snow Hill.
The scheme, which was initially set to be rolled out last autumn, is now being scheduled for launch before the end of summer.
And later this month funding is expected to be announced to support businesses deemed 鈥淭op Cycle Locations鈥 by the council to install new cycle parking facilities.
Professor David Cox, chair of the national cycling charity CTC, commended the work saying he鈥檇 seen a change in the council鈥檚 attitude towards cycling. He said: 鈥淲here we are now is fantastic compared to where we were. When the scrutiny report was first published nothing seemed to really happen and when it did it was pretty pathetic.
鈥淏ut this is a major plan and it鈥檚 not just a cycling plan, it鈥檚 a full public transport plan.
鈥淔or the first time in my experience the council is consulting thoroughly with the cycling community and they鈥檝e also brought in some very good consultants.
鈥淧eople are seeing virtual footage of what the roads could look like and how they could be made more cycle-friendly.鈥
Up to 200 images are being uploaded to the council鈥檚 Be Heard website where members of the public can see how the project affects their neighbourhood and commuting route.
This week saw the unveiling of the first of six upgraded canal towpaths which connect the suburbs to the city centre.
The first to be completed is a 2.2km path running from Winson Green and the Sandwell border to the NIA and Brindleyplace, a route used by more than 50,000 cyclists each year (an average of 137 each day).
The council鈥檚 transport department is also set to consult cyclists about a series of highway improvements along key access routes which could include priority traffic signals and new cycle lanes. But the council has recently come under fire from cyclists who have questioned their dedication after admitting they failed to arrange a date this year for the popular closed-road SkyRide event, which has previously drawn 18,000 residents to the one-day traffic-free ride around the city.
However, Coun James McKay, who holds the cabinet position for 鈥渁 green safe and smart city鈥, said: 鈥淲e are absolutely committed to cycling.
鈥淧romotional events are an important part of that and we are working with Sky to make sure we can put SkyRide on next year.
鈥淏ut because of the road closures and other big events we weren鈥檛 able to fit around those.
鈥淲e鈥檝e got to make sure we鈥檙e not causing problems elsewhere when we鈥檙e closing roads across the city.鈥
Speaking at the opening of the upgraded canal route, he said Birmingham鈥檚 canal network is key to bringing cyclists into the city centre, alongside main roads and quieter parallel routes.
鈥淭he surface here wasn鈥檛 fit for purpose. It was potholed and you鈥檇 turn up to work covered in mud, but the new bonded gravel surface is appropriate for all users.鈥
Coun McKay reckons the Big Birmingham Bikes scheme will build on the city鈥檚 Be Active scheme, offering free leisure centre and swimming pool sessions to card holders at specific times of the week. He said: 鈥淭hat鈥檚 now an internationally recognised public health intervention.
鈥淟ook at the figures: forty per cent of 11-year-olds are overweight and one-in-four is obese.
鈥淭here are barriers to cycling and not everyone can afford to go out and buy a bike straight away, but short-term loans, long-term loans and bike maintenance should help to break down those barriers.鈥
For further information about proposals for highways, green routes and 鈥20 is Plenty鈥 20mph speed limits see
For further information about the Birmingham Cycle Revolution plans see
Apply for your free bike at community hub
Bike hubs are set for 20 locations and residents in the same postcodes as the hubs will be able to apply for a free bike. The hubs are planned to be at:
* Woodgate Valley Visitor Centre
* Edgbaston Reservoir
* National Indoor Arena
* Chinn Brook Recreation Ground and Billesley Common
* Saltley Leisure Centre
* Ward End Park
* Shard End Leisure Centre
* Nechells Leisure Centre
* Aston Villa FC and Aston Park
* Ackers Adventure
* Sheldon Country Park
* Small Heath Park
* Holders Lane Park
* Calthorpe Park
* Northfield Ecocentre
* Kings Norton Park
* Manor Farm Park
* Hamstead Park
* Handsworth Park and Leisure Centre
* Perry Park/Alexander Stadium
Green routes across city
Off-road paths through parks and open spaces are also being improved. One green route along the Small Heath Highway has already been completed as well as minor tweaks to off-road routes along Cheddar Road and Clevedon Road in Balsall Heath and improved signage along the Rea Valley route.
Green routes due to be improved by the end of the year are:
* The Ackers
* Hamstead Park and Park Lane
* Stratford Road and Sarehole Mill
* Stechford to Bordesley Green
* Perry Hall paying fields and Cherry Orchard
* Chinn Brook Rec
* The Dingles and Colebank
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