E-bike share firm to launch across Scotland after ‘great success’ of Forth scheme
AN e-bike share company is to launch across Scotland after the success of the country’s largest scheme over the last two years.
People using Forth Bike’s 144 e-bikes have travelled over 120,000 miles around Forth Valley using since 2019.
Now e-bike firm Bewegen is to launch elsewhere in Scotland, initially in Inverness and Fort William later this year, as well as in cities.
The current most popular Forth Bike station is The Helix, which in this May alone saw over 500 single trips.
This year the number of stations rose to 16 when stations in Denny, Falkirk Community Hospital, Callendar Park, Grangemouth, Bo’ness opened in March.
NHS staff members were offered 100 free memberships, funded by local environmental charity Forth Environment Link, and all of these have been claimed, helping the essential workers travel safely.
Marie-hélène Houle, of Bewegen, which supplies the bikes, said: “Despite the pandemic, last year was a great success for Forth Bike.
“And continuing the success in Scotland, we’re launching our bikes in Inverness and Fort William later this year. Based on the reception Forth Bike has had, we’re confident they’ll be well received and prove that bike schemes are not only popular – and needed – in big metropolitan cities.”
Suvi Loponen, community outreach and business development officer at Forth Bike, said: “The electric assisted bikes have allowed many people who’ve not been on a bike for years to now go out cycling daily with their friends, and visitors whizz around the local sights without having to worry about parking charges or space.”
The communities of Stirling, Falkirk and Clackmannanshire along with the Forth Environment Link (FEL) and NHS Forth Valley have contracted a collaboration and partnership with Bewegen Technologies and Wegoshare.