Credit: Cornwall Council
Efforts to give residents more choice on how they travel will see 250 e-bikes brought to Cornwall over the next few months as part of a new cycle share scheme.
The first 50 ‘Beryl Bikes’ will arrive in Falmouth and Penryn this week, with 20 docking bays where they can be hired and returned.
Operated on behalf of Cornwall Council by the micromobility provider Beryl, the e-bike scheme will then expand to Newquay, Penzance, St Austell and Truro.
Philip Desmonde, Cornwall Council cabinet portfolio holder for transport, said: “This supports our ambitions to give residents choices about how they travel short distances – in Falmouth alone almost half of all car journeys to work are of less than 5km.
“Taking these journeys by e-bike can help make a difference not just to our environment, but our health too.”
Phil Ellis, Beryl CEO, said: “E-bikes are a really fun and versatile way to travel and their extra power can really open up areas, enabling riders to tackle hills and undertake longer journeys.
“They’re also great for commuting, helping to reduce physical exertion and allowing people to arrive at work clean and ready to go.
The e-bike share scheme has been funded by Cornwall Council’s Carbon Neutral Cornwall fund and the DfT.
Users can pay for their journeys in a variety of ways to suit individual needs and circumstances, including Pay As You Ride, Minute Bundles and Day Passes.
Phil Ellis, Beryl CEO, said: “E-bikes are a really fun and versatile way to travel and their extra power can really open up areas…”. They certainly are not “fun” for pedestrians as we now have to contend with these very fast and heavy vehicles terrifying us as they join with ordinary bikes and e-scooters whizzing along the pavements – their riders verbally abusing us if we dare to challenge them.
How do e-bikes “make a difference not just to our environment, but our health too?” They are not active travel. An increasing number of frightened elderly and disabled people now use cars or take taxis instead of walking order to avoid these increasing dangers.
Christina Young, Liverpool
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