Last week, we blogged about the rise of the electric car. Now there’s the rise of the electric bike and Exeter are the first city in the United Kingdom to roll out the Co-Bikes scheme.
This scheme offers the city’s residents and visitors the chance to hire E-bikes, available from five docking sites situated across the city, from the train station to the university. By early 2017, it is hoped that there will be eight sites around the city from which E-bikes can be hired.The hope is that as more e-bikes are being rented, the usage of cars will lessen which will mean a clean, more environmentally-friendly city with a brighter future. It is said that each bike has enough battery to take you 60 miles, and can go as fast as 15mph. For every 30 minutes that you hire the bike, it will cost £1.50 but the price then drops to 75p per 30 minutes for members of the scheme.
The Director of Co-Bikes, Mark Hodgson, has said: “We all know that our cities are becoming more congested and spread-out, and a travel revolution is needed to help people more easily, quickly, enjoyably and affordably reach their business, study or leisure destinations.”Electric bikes are the catalyst for this revolution and for an easy, enjoyable, electric Exeter. Because of their small footprint, they can easily be docked on the street by transport hubs, business and retail parks, and residential communities – helping people link up other transport options in the way that best suits them.”
