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London Bridge to subsidise cargo bikes to show that switching from vans reduces costs and journey timesCargo bike convoy (via Twitter video)

London Bridge to subsidise cargo bikes to show that switching from vans reduces costs and journey times

Move comes ahead of introduction of London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone
by Alex Bowden
Fri, Apr 05, 2019 14:32
4

The London Bridge Business Improvement District (BID), known as Team London Bridge, is to offer firms in the area a subsidy to encourage them to use cargo bikes for deliveries instead of motor vehicles.

Lorries and vans now account for around a fifth of London’s road traffic with the rise in large part being driven by online sales.

Launched yesterday, and supported by Transport for London (TfL), the Bikes for Business programme will help companies identify which bicycle services are best suited to their needs and it will then recommend operators.

The move comes ahead of the introduction of the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) on April 8. Cargo bikes and e-cargo bikes will be exempt from the charges.

A recent study carried out by Team London Bridge found that 23 per cent of London Bridge businesses currently use bikes for deliveries, but 87 per cent would like to use them more.

Forbes reports that businesses in the London Bridge BID include PricewaterhouseCoopers, News UK, Imperial War Museum, and Network Rail.

In a statement, Team London Bridge CEO Nadia Broccardo, said: “The introduction of ULEZ and our Bikes for Business subsidy is a real opportunity to rethink how best to move freight over short distances in the capital. From groceries to medical supplies, cargo bikes can help businesses cut costs and journey times, as well as pollution that is blighting life in London.”

Guy’s Hospital, which lies within the BID, is to trial cargo bikes in partnership with its pathology provider, Viapath.

In February, TfL trialled cargo bike deliveries to a Crossrail site at Whitechapel using cycle lanes instead of a van. According to London cycling commissioner, Will Norman, the bikes were twice as quick as vans.

London
London Bridge
Team London Bridge
Cargo Bikes
ULEZ
Alex Bowden

Alex has written for more cricket publications than the rest of the road.cc team combined. Despite the apparent evidence of this picture, he doesn't especially like cake.

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4 comments

Avatar
growingvegtables | 5 years ago
1 like

Just brilliant.  Or ...? 

Aye, I've a huge caveat .  I didn't see any indication of investment in, or improvement of cycling infrastructure?

Basically - as of this article - it's shunting WVM movements on to "under-used" (ahem!) cycle facilities?

My "no-shit-sherlock" antennae say this is an ill-thought, short-sighted, and incompetent move ... UNTIL (and only if!) the cycle facilities are upgraded to facilitate ALL cycle users.   The faster, the slower, and the cargo bikes.

Avatar
ConcordeCX replied to growingvegtables | 5 years ago
2 likes

growingvegtables wrote:

Just brilliant.  Or ...? 

Aye, I've a huge caveat .  I didn't see any indication of investment in, or improvement of cycling infrastructure?

Basically - as of this article - it's shunting WVM movements on to "under-used" (ahem!) cycle facilities?

My "no-shit-sherlock" antennae say this is an ill-thought, short-sighted, and incompetent move ... UNTIL (and only if!) the cycle facilities are upgraded to facilitate ALL cycle users.   The faster, the slower, and the cargo bikes.

the roads are still available to bikes

Avatar
pmurden | 5 years ago
2 likes

Good news surely, let's hope it catches on.

Avatar
ConcordeCX replied to pmurden | 5 years ago
0 likes

pmurden wrote:

Good news surely, let's hope it catches on.

I. Two things spring to mind.

First, I hope all the close-passing van drivers retrain and learn the errors of their former ways.

Second, if you see a cargo bike being pursued by hungry dogs, they'll have got a sniff of this one: "cargo bikes in partnership with its pathology provider, Viapath.".

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