More than 50,000 miles covered in bike hire scheme

The creators of a city bicycle share scheme have said more than 50,000 journeys have been made since it began a year ago.

Beryl now has 175 e-bikes and 75 pedal bikes in Worcester after launching on 17 June 2024.

The firm, which runs similar schemes in other parts of the country including Hereford and Birmingham, said riders had covered nearly 80,000 miles (128,748km) in that time.

Beryl's co-founder and chief executive, Phil Ellis, said he was "delighted" by how successful the scheme had been.

Launched in 2012, Beryl now offers a mix of pedal and electric bikes, as well as e-scooters, in locations across the UK.

Riders use a phone app to unlock and rent a bike for periods ranging from a few minutes to several days.

Speaking at an event to mark a year since Beryl's arrival in Worcester, the firm's Tom White said usage had risen considerably in the past year.

"Comparing this June to June last year, you can see ridership is much, much stronger - and it's going up month after month.

"You can see people's rides and people's commutes are embedding in even more."

There are now 175 e-bikes and 75 pedal bikes in Worcester.

Mr White said the e-bikes were especially popular.

"People who maybe were a little bit cautious about trying to go on their commutes on a pedal bike, not wanting to arrive at work too sweaty, are jumping on the e-bikes and unlocking a new level of accessibility that wasn't available to them before," he said.

The scheme is run in partnership with Worcester City Council, using funding from the Town Investment Plan.

Councillor Robyn Norfolk described it as a "fantastic addition" to the city's transport offering.

"The benefits are clear, from promoting active lifestyles and improving the health and wellbeing of our community, to contributing to reduced traffic and cleaner air," she said.

Last year, Beryl riders in Hereford - where the scheme has been running since 2019 - passed the 1,000,000km (621,371 miles) mark.

Mr White said the bikes had become part of the lexicon, with locals talking about "Berylling it to places".

"We're hopeful that it gets to that point here as well and people have that sort of loyalty to the scheme," he added.

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