E-bike fact, and friction, #182

Trouble in the air, solutions in the city

This week, there’s a lot of London news, but also some important input relating to accessibility … and a surprising entry for you, involving children’s TV. I bet you can’t guess. And don’t say we don’t keep you on your toes.

BIG STORIES FOR CYCLING ADVOCACY

TUBE STRIKE’S LONG TAIL. A quarter of Londoners say they are more likely to cycle following last month’s tube strike, according to research by Lime and YouGov. The Evening Standard reports Lime saw a spike in usage that week, with 50% week-on-week growth on the Monday and Tuesday, and 74% on Wednesday. By Thursday, trip duration and distance was up by more than a third, suggesting riders’ growing confidence in travelling further by bike. Of the 1,027 Londoners surveyed a whopping one in five said they cycled during the strike. Cycling is becoming normalised.

IMPACT OF E-BIKE BATTERY CONFUSION SPREADS. A Disabled woman was told she couldn’t take her mobility scooter on a Qantas flight because of its Lithium Ion battery. Dr Jurai Darongkamas is a clinical psychologist who lives in Birmingham. She wasn’t allowed to board a flight from Sydney to New Zealand with the scooter, despite the battery being correctly certified and safe for air travel. Qantas insisted the scooter is a personal electronic device, rather than a mobility aid, describing it as “a bike, electric bike, tricycle or electric tricycle”. This is concerning for those whose e-cycles are their mobility aid.

SEVEN MORE YEARS FOR SANTANDER CYCLES. London’s cycle hire scheme - which the Evening Standard still calls Boris Bikes - has a £40m sponsorship renewal with Santander bank, until 2032. London’s cycling and walking commissioner, Will Norman, says it’s a good value, popular scheme that offers customers the predictability of docking stations. While hires dropped since the advent of dockless cycles, there were a respectable 8m hires last year. Transport for London hopes to increase the electric fleet to remain competitive against the likes of Lime, from 2,000 to 5,000 bikes.

HIRE BIKE COMPETITION IN LONDON. Hackney council has awarded exclusive dockless bike contracts to Lime and Voi, while controversially excluding their rival, Forest. The five-year deal, which is said to be ‘highly lucrative’ for Hackney Council, will see 30-minute ride charges capped at £1.75 for borough residents. Included are tougher measures on bikes blocking pavements and bad rider behaviour. It looks increasingly unlikely that a London-wide scheme will provide a consistent end user experience, with boroughs tempted to make a revenue share cut by doing deals with individual providers.

TV BEATS BIKE? More kids have access to a TV (90%) than to their own cycle (75%), according to Bikeability research. For back to school season, Hey Cycle! Representations of Cycling on Children’s TV, reveals submarines outnumber bicycles in Paw Patrol. Hey Duggee saw 20% of animals cycle to daycare, vs 2% in the real world. While tongue-in-cheek, Bikeability argues representation - and normalisation - of behaviour like cycling helps build healthy habits. In Disney’s Phineas and Ferb! cycling is embedded in every character’s habits.

BIKE THEFT DECRIMINALISED. Bad news if you actually own your own bike; the British Transport Police (BTP) says it will not investigate bike thefts outside stations where the bicycle has been left for more than two hours, according to BBC News.

OTHER HEADLINES

GUIDE TO INCLUSIVE CYCLING GETS A REFRESH. Wheels for Wellbeing’s often-referenced Guide to Inclusive Cycling has just been updated. It’s essential reading for policymakers, designers and campaigners understand the principles of inclusive design, and is already used around the world. As the charity’s director, Isabelle Clement, put it, the cycling agenda has broadened, with ‘huge progress in recognising and understanding Disabled people’s differing mobility needs’. The Guide covers the fundamentals of inclusive cycling, barriers faced by Disabled cyclists, and the benefits of cycling, among other things.

INTERESTING GRAPH OF THE WEEK:

Representation matters. This week’s research, by Bikeability, illustrates the vehicles featured on Paw Patrol. A few more cycles surely wouldn’t hurt! Source.

ACTIVE TRAVEL WORD OF THE WEEK:

Mobility Justice. As Wheels for Wellbeing puts it, this means ‘instead of providing more resources for people who already have the most transport and mobility choices, priority is given to providing opportunities and resources for those who have least’.

Until next time,

Adam

Adam Tranter

CEO, Fusion & Founder, #BikeIsBest

This newsletter is brought to you by Fusion, the agency for movers, specialising in communications and public affairs for active travel and mobility.