Celebrating Cycle to Work Day: Bristol BID’s free bike safety checks reach third year of service
The Dr Bike collaboration with Life Cycle has been servicing Bristol City Centre and Redcliffe & Temple areas since 2021, promoting a more sustainable way to travel
Today is Cycle to Work Day 2024, encouraging people of all ages and abilities to enjoy a healthier, more sustainable journey to their workplace. Thanks to a collaboration between the Bristol City Centre and Redcliffe & Temple Business Improvement District’s (BID) and Life Cycle – known as the Dr Bike scheme – it’s never been easier for residents and workers in the area to enjoy a two-wheeled commute.
July marks three years since Redcliffe & Temple BID introduced the Dr Bike initiative, with November marking three years since Bristol City Centre BID followed suit, enabling people working within the area to book a slot and have their bike serviced by a Life Cycle mechanic, free of charge.
In the three years of Dr Bike’s continuous practice, nearly 1,500 bikes have been serviced, with exceptional feedback from customers. In a survey conducted by Redcliffe & Temple BID, 84% of participants reported that they have received an excellent experience, with 98% saying they would recommend Dr Bike to colleagues and 40% saying they have used their bike more as a result of the scheme.
Bristol-based cycling charity, Life Cycle is on a mission to help more people experience the benefits of cycling – transforming lives and the environment in the process. Life Cycle offers a range of services from affordable, refurbished bikes and repairs – to teaching people of all ages to ride and even build a career in the cycle industry. To date, the organisation has helped over 87,000 people.
To encourage commuting to work via bike, Life Cycle and Bristol’s BIDs came together to run the Dr Bike scheme in 2021. Giving employees the readily available opportunity to have their bikes checked by a registered mechanic, they also fix any issues including inflating tyres and adjusting brakes, cables and blocks.
Tom Swithinbank, Senior Project Manager at the BIDs, said: “It’s great to see that due to the scheme, businesses, staff and residents are more frequently using their bikes to get around. We are keen to see cycling levels continue to increase, especially as a means of travelling to work. We’re delighted with the continued uptake of the service and amazing feedback we’ve received.”
Becky Whitlock, Marketing Manager at Life Cycle, adds: “We are really grateful for the opportunity to support more people to cycle by removing a key barrier – lack of access to safe, reliable bikes. We look forward to seeing how we, alongside the BIDs, can transform even more lives through cycling, enriching health and wellbeing for those working in businesses around the local area.”
To find out more about Dr Bike and Cycle to Work day, visit: https://www.redcliffeandtemplebid.co.uk/projects/dr-bike/
https://www.cyclescheme.co.uk/cycletoworkday
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