Westminster e-cargo bike sharing scheme launched as green travel initiative

Westminster City Council is launching an e-cargo bike-sharing service in a bid to improve the green travel options in the city.

The council made the announcement as part of a £35m investment to develop the infrastructure for those walking, cycling or using public transport, and to move Westminster closer to becoming a carbon-neutral city.

The pilot will be run in partnership with Beryl, a provider of bike-rental services in the UK. The only other London local authority the company has arranged a similar scheme with to-date is Hackney.

E-cargo bikes are electric-powered and have large storage boxes to enable riders to carry items such as tools or groceries.

The new bikes will be available to hire in four Westminster locations: Maida Hill, Harrow Road, Church Street, and Tachbrook Market.

Cllr Paul Dimoldenberg, cabinet member for city management and air quality at Westminster City Council, said: “The launch of these new e-cargo bikes in partnership with Beryl is one of the innovative ways the council is providing residents and businesses a good, sustainable alternative to cars and vans so we can create a fairer Westminster for everyone to live in and enjoy.”

Beryl chief executive and co-founder Phil Ellis, said: “We know from running an e-cargo bike hire pilot scheme in Hackney that our e-cargo bikes can be incredibly useful to many people, from businesses and tradesmen to families and individuals.

“They’re not only fun and sustainable, they have a wide range of uses and are a great way to avoid being sat in endless traffic queues while boosting your mental and physical health.

“The vehicles are also extremely convenient and cost-effective when compared to private vehicle ownership, removing the burden of storage as well as the cost of fuel, tax, maintenance, MOT and insurance.

“I’d urge people to give them a try and help make Westminster an even cleaner and safer place to live and work in.”

What else did Westminster invest in?

In addition to the e-cargo bike scheme, Westminster City Council invested in a host of active travel and sustainable transport initiatives as it looks to meet its target of becoming a net-zero city by 2040.

They include:

• Adding five new school streets a year,
• 400 new cycle stand spaces a year,
• 15km of new or upgraded cycle lanes by the end of 2025,
• investment in the redesign of dangerous junctions such as Duncannon Street and Bishop’s Bridge Road,
• And implementing two-way cycling on 20 more one-way streets by the end of 2025.

Cllr Dimoldenberg said: “This considerable budget allocation towards active travel and sustainable transport shows how committed we are to making the city a safer and more pleasant place to walk and cycle, and to tackle key pinch points for London’s vital bus network.

“Improvements to walking safety, cycling connections and public transport priority schemes are vital if we are to improve air quality.”