Public consultation has started for options for a potential bike hire scheme

16 April 2019

A survey has started to find out people’s views on a potential public bike hire scheme in Aberdeen.

The survey is part of consultation work Aberdeen City Council is undertaking with organisations throughout the city including a cycling advocate group.

Aberdeen City Council transportation spokesperson Councillor Sandra Macdonald said: “We’d urge as many people as possible to take part in the survey as even if you don’t cycle around at the moment, you may have used a similar bike hire scheme in another city.

“We’d welcome your opinion about how it could work in Aberdeen.”

The survey will consider the level of interest in a cycle hire scheme, the kind of trips that the bikes might be used for, and how the cycle hire scheme could operate.

The survey also asks how people think a bike hire scheme should be funded and the different types of funding management models. It further asks what types of bikes people would want to see in a bike hire scheme including a standard pedal bike, an electric bike, a cargo bike, and a disability bike.

The survey for the bike hire scheme options appraisal, which should take about 10 minutes to fill in, is available at https://consultation.aberdeencity.gov.uk/place/bike-hire-scheme-options-apprasial. The results of the survey will form part of the wider bike hire scheme options appraisal which will be reported to a City Council committee in the coming months.

The survey and bike hire scheme options appraisal are part of the European-wide Civitas Portis transportation project, which is worth £3.2million to the north-east led by Aberdeen City Council, and involves a consortium of council, university and private partners aimed at improving travel in the area.

The Civitas Portis European Union grant is being used to examine transport solutions with a connection with port operations, supporting sustainable urban mobility through changes in behaviour and the attitudes of citizens, planners, politicians and industries. It will also help address social inclusion and provide opportunities for economic growth. The partners for the project also include Aberdeenshire Council, Nestrans, The Robert Gordon University, the University of Aberdeen, and Aberdeen Harbour Board.