London Cycle Hire Scheme
- greaterlondon
- Apr 23, 2015
- 2 min read
London's public bicycle scheme is a great way to travel around the city - and the first half an hour is free! Grab yourself a "Boris bike" and get riding today.
London's public bike sharing scheme, Santander Cycles, is available 24/7, 365 days a year. There are more than 10,000 bikes and over 700 bike docking stations across London to help you get around quickly and easily. The scheme includes South West London so now you can saddle up anywhere from Shepherds Bush to Canary Wharf and Wandsworth Town to Camden Town.
The "Boris bikes" (nicknamed after London's Mayor Boris Johnson) are available to hire at the docking station terminal with a bank card – just touch the screen and follow the instructions to begin.
Getting started is easy – simply hire a bike, ride it where you like, then return it to any of the hundreds of docking stations across the city.
It costs £2 to access the bikes for 24 hour bike access, and the first 30 minutes of each journey is free. Longer journeys cost £2 for each extra 30 minutes. Remember, if you aren’t using a bike, dock it. You can hire a bike as many times as you like within the bike access period you have purchased.
Example - Juan
To get started, Juan buys £2 bike access for 24 hours, rides for 15 minutes to Trafalgar Square and docks his bike nearby. Later that day, he picks up another bike and rides for 22 minutes to the theatre and returns the bike there. The first 30 minutes of each journey is free, so Juan only pays £2 in total.
Visit TfL's Cycle Hire docking station page to keep up to date with bike availability at your nearest docking station for hiring and returning the bikes.
If you are looking for inspiration, Transport for London has created some bike rides around London. The easy to follow, self-guided routes will help you discover London’s hidden gems by bike. There are also cycle paths in many of London’s parks including Regents Park and Hyde Park.
When you've finished your journey, just drop the bike back to one of the many docking stations across London. Cycle Hire docking stations are located across nine London boroughs and in several Royal Parks in Central London.
If you want to hire a bike for a full day or longer, it may be cheaper to rent it from one of London's many bicycle hire companies.
Other Charges
If you don't return your bike, or you bring it back late or damaged, you may be charged up to £300.
Explore London's Cycle Hire Routes
Transport for London have created a number of hidden gem cycle routes that will take you throughquirky London, secret gardens, Saturday markets, independent shops and markets, andsporting London. The sports route will have you cycling passed Chelsea and Fulham football clubs, the Kia Oval cricket ground, part of the Oxford and Cambridge university boat race route, and along a section of the London 2012 Olympic Games Cycling Road Race.
Kommentare