New electric cargo bike hire scheme available in Eastleigh and Southampton
RIDES scheme to help local businesses and other organisations deliver by e-bike
A new electric cargo bike hire scheme is now available to businesses and other organisations in Eastleigh to help them reduce air pollution when transporting goods and making local deliveries.
A fleet of 10 electric cargo bikes will be available to businesses and educational, charitable, community and voluntary sector organisations.
Trialling a RIDES (Realising Innovative Deliveries in Eastleigh and Southampton) ecargo bike is free and organisations can hire them for anything from a weekend event to a longer trial period of up to three months.
The scheme allows organisations to see how choosing using a greener, more sustainable delivery method can work for them, at the same time as reducing congestion and improving air quality in the local area.
There are five Tern GSD S00 e-bikes and five Urban Arrow flatbed e-bikes available to hire, equipped with lockable boxes capable of carrying up to 100kg to enable the transportation of multiple goods in and around the Eastleigh and Southampton area.
RIDES is funded by a £50,000 grant from the Government’s eCargo Bike Grant Fund, following a successful funding bid in partnership with The Hub Cycleworks and Monty’s Bike Hub, supported by Zedify Southampton.
How can I trial a RIDES ecargo bike?
If you are interested in testing a bike, please email the RIDES project manager, Stuart Williams, at stuart.williams@southampton.gov.uk.
We will ask you to fill out a RIDES project application form for your trial, where you will be required to detail: how long you’d like to trial the bike for, for what purpose, and the aims of your trial. If your application is successful, any staff or volunteers wishing to use the bike will have to take part in a short training session about operating the bikes and loading them correctly. Training is provided free of charge. Priority will be given to businesses and organisations already working with My Journey’s Workplaces and Community Teams.
If after the trail you think ecargo bikes could work for your business a My Journey Work Travel grant is available to businesses working with the My Journey Workplaces team. You can apply for up to £5,000 of match funding to help you purchase your own ecargo bike. Find out more about applying for a Workplace Travel Grant and contact workplaces@myjourneyhampshire for more information.