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Waltham Forest Council has secured £150,000 funding for a new fleet of 28 e-cargo bikes, to support more zero-emission bike-based services across the borough.
The council plans to use the funding to expand the e-cargo bikes available to the zero-emission delivery (ZED) scheme, increase e-cargo bike transportation for waste and recycling services in the borough’s parks, and support ‘E-Cargo Culture’, a consortium of local social enterprises carrying out a range of sustainability-focused work in the borough.
The funding came from the e-Cargo Bike Grant Fund run by the Department for Transport and Energy Saving Trust. The grant means that combined with Waltham Forest’s Community Cycle Loan Fleet, which loans the bikes to anyone who lives, works or studies in Waltham Forest, the council will now own a total of 50 e-cargo bikes.
Waltham Forest’s Community Cycle Loan free loan scheme allows cyclists to experience the benefits of e-cargo bikes for up to three weeks. On 21st August, the council is hosting an e-cargo bike try out day in Leyton Jubilee Park. More details and booking information is available here.
Councillor Clyde Loakes, deputy leader of Waltham Forest Council and cabinet member for the environment, said: “The funding award shows once again Waltham Forest Council is a leader in cycling and sustainable transport in the UK. The funding allows us to double our fleet of e-cargo bikes, making it one of the largest in the UK, so that more council services, contractors, partners and businesses can move away from motorised vehicles to choose sustainable transport.
“Cargo bikes are great alternatives to the cars and vans, they have been shown to be 60% faster than delivery vans in cities, and they reduce road vehicle traffic and CO2 emissions. The expansion of our e-cargo fleet is another step to building a more efficient, clean and green borough.”
A recent study found that e-cargo bikes can deliver about 60% faster than vans in city centres, while bikes had a higher average speed and could drop off ten parcels an hour, compared with six for vans.
ZED Waltham Forest is a partnership set up in 2016 between Waltham Forest Council and Zedify to increase the use of cargo bikes and electric vehicles in the borough. The additional cargo bikes will be loaned to ZED Waltham Forest for deliveries for local businesses, adding to the fleet which has been loaned by Waltham Forest Council.
Read the August issue of BikeBiz below:
