Top 10 Questions about the Bristol Big Issue E-Bike rental scheme

Eco-friendly bikes will be available in Bristol from February 1, before being rolled out to the rest of the country in the future. 

If you live in Bristol you have likely already seen them around the city!

The monthly subscription is £19.95/month. This is for unlimited rides up to 10 minutes per ride and then charged at 20p per minute to a maximum of £12 a day. The subscription can be cancelled at any time without penalty.

There is also a pay-as-you-go option which only requires a £10 deposit and 50p to get started and then is charged at 20p per minute up to a maximum of £12 for the day.

Big Issue eBikes will also directly benefit Bristol’s Clean Air plan by providing a genuine alternative to car use. This is important, as currently over 80 per cent of Bristol’s pollution has been shown to be from local traffic sources. The estimated benefit for Bristol with a scheme of around 500 bikes is a direct reduction of 1,900 car trips a day.

The scheme is also designed to meet environmental needs and encourage healthy living in each location, by reducing congestion and encouraging people to cycle, rather than drive – as even the small changes people make towards living eco-friendly lives can make a difference.

The scheme will be launched with a £450,000 investment from City Funds, a Bristol-based impact investment fund run by Bristol & Bath Regional Capital (BBRC).

The area of the Big Issue scheme stretches from Dundry in the south, to Warmley and Emersons Green in the east, to Severn Beach in the north, with the Bristol Channel being the westernmost boundary.

The Big Issue eBikes scheme is the first of its kind and will recruit and retrain unemployed and vulnerable people in local communities and provide them with access to support and services to improve their lives. All employees will be paid a Living Wage.

The Big Issue has said that said it will recruit and retrain people who were previously unemployed and support them back into work to run the programme, with a team of ten employees at the Bristol hub in Brislington.

If you are a cyclist, to register or to hear more about when The Big Issue eBikes scheme, visit www.bigissue.bike.

The bikes can be hired via the Big Issue eBike App. The locations of the bikes can be found in the app.

Created in partnership with Norwegian firm ShareBike, the scheme aims to encourage active travel in Bristol while tackling unemployment.

The Big Issue said it would recruit and retrain people who were previously unemployed and support them back into work to run the e-bike programme, starting with a team of 10 employees at the Bristol hub.

There are plans to expand to 14 other areas across the country over the next two years.

The eBikes team have taken delivery of 420 distinctive red and white branded bikes, which are set to head into the streets in a matter of weeks.

The scheme was announced in November 2020, so it’s taken over a year for the bikes to be ready after coronavirus caused issues with supply chains.

The scheme is also designed to support goals encouraging people to cycle rather than drive. The estimated benefit for Bristol with a deployment of around 500 bikes is a direct reduction of 1,900 car trips a day, according to the organisers.