Glasgow gearing up to be cycling champion

The Netherlands is currently Europe’s biking hotspot, and Paris plans to be more bicycle-friendly by making ten-minute neighbourhoods and taking cars off the streets. But could it be Glasgow that actually emerges as the cycling champion of the world?

That’s the vision of Rashid Khaliq, chief executive of Glasgow-based charity Soulriders, which combines introducing communities to cycling with a sustainabilityfocused entrepreneurship that saw the launch of its Revolutionize edition, pictured.

It is Scotland’s first integrated e-cargo bike delivery and food waste service, made possible thanks to an allocation of £140,615 from SP Energy Network’s £20 million Green Economy Fund. The sum allowed Soulriders to purchase five of the special bikes in 2020.

But while the initiative has already saved several tons of carbon by replacing car and van use, it was also able to adapt quickly during the pandemic.

Khaliq explains: “When Covid-19 kicked off, one of the first things that we adapted was using Revolutionize to create Covid-19 distribution sites. Folk needed basic necessities – medicines, all those kinds of things – and doorstep delivery.

“They are quicker, more efficient and cost-effective than cars and vans.”

At its core, though, is the idea of micro-mobility, an extension to smart cities that could lift thousands of tonnes of emissions from the air and create a whole new culture.

“Micro-mobility solutions such as ours also feed into e-commerce. The DPD and Amazons of this world, they are all looking for last-mile and first-mile solutions,” Khaliq adds. “And I think Glasgow is prime. The river here has huge potential when it comes to development. So, we’ve got this blank canvas template in a major city which we can design as we please.

“My concern is that the people who are going to set the frameworks don’t realise how much of a sweet-spot solution micro-mobility is and how it feeds into the other solutions.

“So, I’m working with the University of Strathclyde talking about repurposing commercial buildings to create microhubs and regional hubs across the UK, but we would love for Glasgow to be that flagship cycling city.”

It’s a vision born out of Khaliq talking with a friend in his office about how unusual it was to see anyone from a diverse background on a bike. It led first to a cycling group, then charity chapters, and now this.

He says: “It’s quite amazing how this grassroots community organisation has gone strategic, because our approach isn’t a top-down or bottom-up – it’s a balanced approach – grass roots scalability. This fits into net-zero place, net-zero city, smarter, more sustainable cities of tomorrow.

“But without the Green Economy Fund and SP Energy Networks, part of the Scottishpower group, we would not be where we are. It was the catalyst and absolutely everything for the project.”