Last chance to apply for a FREE bike
Would-be cyclists have just days left to apply for the next stage of a FREE bike giveaway in Birmingham.
Hundreds of people across the city have already put their names into the hat for Big Birmingham Bikes, with the first wave of 1,500 cycles already allocated.
Now applicants have a second chance, with another 1,500 bikes set to be allocated next week. The closing date for the second draw is Monday 30 March.
Part of Birmingham City Council’s £24.3 million Birmingham Cycle Revolution, Big Birmingham Bikes is a ground-breaking initiative aiming to encourage people of all backgrounds to get cycling regularly.
In December, Raleigh bikes was awarded the contract to provide 5,000 Big Birmingham Bikes that will help encourage more cycling in the city.
3,000 of the new Raleigh bikes will be given away to people who are keen to cycle but unable to afford it. The remaining 2,000 will be used to hire out around the city.
To qualify for a free bike, users must be aged over 16, will need a valid Birmingham City Council leisure card and have taken and passed the learn-to-ride Bikeability Level 2 and cycle maintenance courses. Bikes will be allocated by a postcode lottery to people who register on the scheme and pass the necessary courses.
Big Birmingham Bikes Project Manager, John Carrigan, said: “The response to this scheme has been phenomenal and the first successful applicants have already been allocated a new bike.
“The popularity of this scheme clearly shows that many people across Birmingham are interested in cycling but struggle to meet the cost of a new bike.
“The giveaway is just one part of our overall work to get more people cycling in Birmingham. We’re putting cycle lanes around canals, improving cycling lanes on major routes around the city. We also have a range of training opportunities.”
Useful information
The Big Birmingham Bikes team has identified postcodes where the need for these bikes is greatest and applicants must be able to prove they live in one of the qualifying areas.
The deadline for the draw is 30 March.
To apply go to: http://www.birmingham.gov.uk/bbb
Successful applicants will be informed by email or phone.
They will then follow one of two paths:
- They will need to complete cycle training up to Bikeability Level 2 and attend a two-hour cycle maintenance course. These courses are run across 22 new cycle centres across the whole city. More details on www.birmingham.gov.uk and www.bikeright.co.uk/westmidlands/bigbirminghambikes.
- They will need to sign a disclaimer to say that they are already up to Bikeability Level 2.
Successful applicants will then receive a voucher and details of which retailer they should visit to collect their bike.
Bikes will be delivered to Birmingham City Council at some stage in April – at which point the collection process can begin.
In addition to the giveaway, the Big Birmingham Bikes project aims to encourage more cycling in the city with a range of activities and training opportunities.
