Nextbike, the self-service bike rental scheme, has reached a major milestone clocking up a quarter of a million rentals nationwide.
The 250,000th rental was symbolic in that it took place in Bath, where the scheme was launched in June 2014.
Since then, nextbike has become an integrated mode of transport for many users across the country.
Julian Scriven, General Director of nextbike UK said: “Britain is slowly becoming a country that loves cycling. Little by little people are understanding that everyone can nextbike, as bikes are comfortable for people of all abilities.
“We are delighted that this milestone was achieved in Bath where it all began for us. Bath and North East Somerset Council has been very supportive of the scheme and it’s a real pleasure to work with them.
“We have observed a healthy increase in the number of users of nextbike in Bath this year, and it goes on to show that Bath loves to cycle.”
The nextbike hire scheme allows users to drop at multiple locations, including Bath Spa railway station, Bath Spa University, The Guildhall and other city centre locations, as well as the Royal United Hospital.
The bikes are available 24 hours a day and users can register and hire bikes in just a couple of minutes.
Since its launch, the service has been growing in membership and now has around 877 users a month.
Councillor Anthony Clarke (Conservative. Lansdown), Bath & North East Somerset Council’s Cabinet Member for Transport, said: “I’m delighted with the uptake of the scheme which is proving popular with visitors and local residents alike.
“A quarter of a million rentals in the United Kingdom is quite an achievement, considering that a few years ago bike sharing was not common at all.”
Residents and visitors to Bath have 14 docking station locations to choose from when they hire and return their bike including Moorland Road, Orange Grove and Newbridge Park and Ride.
On average users of nextbike hire a bike for 1.5 hours, with 59% of users preferring to drop the bike at a different location to where they hired it, demonstrating the power of the A-B system.
Users can hire bikes direct from the docking stations on street or by using a mobile-based application.
Registration to the scheme is free and each rental costs £1 per half hour. For full subscribers, rentals are free for the first 30 minutes of every rental.
There is a maximum charge of £10 per day to allow riders to explore the city and its environs. A lock is provided to enable users to secure the bike during use.
The scheme is operated by nextbike, but is part-funded by Bath & North East Somerset Council through the Department of Transport’s Local Sustainable Transport Fund.
nextbike UK is part of the wider global nextbike family, operating more than 1,000 bikes in the United Kingdom and over 32,000 more in over 18 countries worldwide.
For more information, visit www.nextbike.co.uk/en/bath.
