Most of Brighton’s bikeshare bikes are set to go electric when the scheme relaunches next year.
Bidders are now being invited to express an interest in running the scheme, with a requirement for at least 60% of the bikes to be electric
Bidding closes in early May and it’s hoped new operator and supplier contracts will be agreed by the end of the summer.
A new contract will include expanding the current fleet of bikes from 600 to 780, of which at least 60% will be electric bikes.
However, the council has warned it could take a while for this target to be reached, as global supply chain issues mean there will be delays in getting new bikes onto the streets.
In the meantime, the current scheme will continue with more refurbished bikes until the new fleet has been delivered and all systems have been tested.
Councillor Steve Davis, Co-Chair of the Environment, Transport and Sustainability committee said: “This really is an exciting time for BTN BikeShare. With electric bikes being added to the fleet and new hubs planned for the city, we’re giving our residents and visitors every reason to take advantage of this wonderful scheme.
“We have to offer options to vehicle use and this is a step in the right direction if we are to meet our carbon neutral targets.
“There’s also the thrilling prospect of seeing the scheme expanded beyond Brighton & Hove’s boundaries.
“BTN BikeShare is a community asset the city can be proud of. It’s a key part of our work to tackle the climate crisis, reduce congestion and reach our target of being net zero by 2030.”
The council says the new scheme will also create the potential to expand to neighbouring local authorities.
The new operator will be scored not only on the quality of their bid and offer to users, but also on their sustainability commitments and the social value they can offer to the city.
This will require them to tailor their marketing and offers to underrepresented cycling groups in the city, such as those from the BME community, over-55s and others, to create employment opportunities for young people and to show that sustainability will be a key part of the way the scheme is operated.
As well as new electric bikes, there will also be 312 new pedal-only bikes to replace the existing pedal-only fleet, more hubs around the city and range of tariff options for users.
A new sponsor will also be sought.
Councillor Davis – please can you tell us whether the scheme currently runs at a loss or makes a profit ? Asking for a few tens of thousands of council taxpayers
With the hilly nature of the city there has always been the need for electric bikes as your predecessor Ian Davey said in 2013 – https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/10338644.boris-bike-scheme-is-a-bit-of-an-uphill-struggle/
We need electric bike hubs at the tops of hills and at other locations away from the central flat area where pedalling is not so much of an issue.
Considering that the council is always complaining about the lack of funds and the inability to provide basic statuary services such as street cleaning, weed removal and infrastructure maintenance (i.e. Madeira Terraces) how will the city council financially support this scheme by?
How much will the increase in the number of rental bikes by 30% reduce carbon emissions on the city – or is it yet another scheme where you hope to make savings but carefully avoid any measurements or have any predefined success criteria?
And just a reminder Steve Davis – the council declared a climate emergency in 2018 and PROMISED to make the city carbon neutral by 2030.
The council carefully avoided stating what is in scope and, as we are now one-third of the way to 2030, what have you achieved so far in reducing carbon emissions in tonnes of CO2 and as a percentage of total city emissions?
I’m going to wade in here because I’m not convinced by the reasoning used. How green actually is this scheme?
The first point of worry is that they appear to be scrapping or at least replacing the existing fleet of bikes. Already – how old are they?
If 60% of the new bikes will be electrically assisted, what will they cost to buy and what will be the subsequent hire charge needed for this new fleet of ebikes?
At the moment the scheme has worked well – allowing casual bike rides for individuals and groups of friends without them needing to own a bike. You can also use one to get home at night when there are no buses. But the cost of renting one makes them unaffordable for commuters, so the scheme actually does little to help us reduce cars on the road.
There’s also now the worry of how fast will these bikes go? And remember they are often in the hands of new or inexperienced riders, so you often see them on the pavements. And if these are actually motor bikes, then how are they contributing to the council’s ‘active travel’ goal?
And how are these ebikes to be charged? How long do the batteries last before they need to be replaced?
(My own pushbike lasted 20 years – and I’d still be using it now if it hadn’t been stolen.)
I note too that the original fleet of bikes were bought on the basis they could be electrified at a further date, and yet later that proved to not be the case.
So, reading between the lines here, it sounds like a new contractor is being sought to run another commercial venture which we are partly paying for, and a whole new fleet of bikes will have to be made and imported in, probably all the way from China – and that doesn’t sound green at all.
Are we actually losing track of what the original bike hire scheme used to be about? – namely to make cycling more affordable in the city.
If I’m wrong on any or all of these points then I’d welcome some counter-arguments.
>There’s also now the worry of how fast will these bikes go? And remember they are often in the hands of new or inexperienced riders, so you often see them on the pavements. And if these are actually motor bikes, then how are they contributing to the council’s ‘active travel’ goal?
For something to legally be considered an e-bike in the UK (instead of a pedelec/electric scooter) it must be limited to a max speed of 15mph and be powered by pedal assist, ie. the rider is always pedalling, they just need to exert less effort due to assistance from the motor.
There are certainly a fair amount of dodgy pedelecs being passed off as e-bikes by delivery riders and such, but the council is obviously going to need to be legally compliant.
With regards to the ‘activeness’ of e-bike cycling, as I said with pedal assist you are still always pedalling as often as you would on a regular bike, and you still have to exert some effort the whole time. There’s a good deal of evidence that people who have access to e-bikes actually get more exercise on them than they would on regular bikes, because they enable longer and more complex journeys.
Extending the scheme beyond Brighton and Hove? It would be nice if it actually reached all parts of Brighton and Hove first. Electric bikes is a sensible idea and scooters once legalised. Hope the new bikes also come with safety helmets.
Great! E-bikes are a natural fit for Brighton’s hills and will make the bike-share even better than it is now!
Wow ~ What a fantastic scheme!
Well done BHCC 🚴💚🚴🏽♂️