'Boris-style' bikes come to Kent stations
by James Scott
Fit commuters should be able to hire foldable bicycles from
several Kent train stations by the summer.
Plans are afoot to install bikes at Ashford International,
Maidstone East, Canterbury West and Tonbridge stations.
Brompton Dock, which is proposing to install a locker holding 20
bicycles at each station, said they would be place in the near
future.
Spokesman Ruth Hardy said: “I can’t give an exact date but it
will be in the next couple of months.”
The Department for Transport, which has been working closely
with charity Sustrans and the Cycle Rail Working Group, will put
forward £124,000 for the project with further funding coming from
Southeastern, the Local Sustainable Transport Fund and Kent County
Council.
The scheme, similar to the Boris Bikes initiative in London,
will enable commuters to register online to get a code which they
can text, along with the dock number to release a bike from the
dock.
Charles Horton, managing
director, Southeastern
A bike, which can be folded to the size of a briefcase, can then
be released and used as much as the commuter wishes.
The membership will cost £45 per year for regular members, with
a bike hire charge of £2.50 per day, or £10 per year for leisure
members, with a charge of £5 per day.
Southeastern’s managing director Charles Horton, who already
uses Brompton bikes to commute, said it was terrific news for
passengers when the project was first announced.
“In the past few years we have seen an increase in the number of
people riding bikes and Southeastern is supportive of this trend,”
he said.
“Because the
Brompton bikes are foldable, we allow passengers to carry them
onboard our trains during the peak, provided they are safely stowed
away as luggage.”
Southeastern spokesman Alison Nolan added: “We’re really pleased
to be working with our partners on this project; the Kent County
Council and Brompton Dock to bring the cycle scheme to Kent.
“The Brompton Dock hire scheme will be available in the coming
months at Ashford International, Canterbury West, Maidstone East
and Tonbridge stations.
"We want to encourage more people to leave their cars at home
and ride to the station wherever possible – we do allow the fold-up
bikes on our trains at all times of the day, so the Brompton bikes
are ideal for commuters on our services.
“This investment is part of our commitment to provide more
services for our customers and is on top of the 2,500 additional
cycle rack spaces we’ve created at stations across Kent in the past
four years.”
07/03/13
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