Islington Council is set to install its landmark 500th on-street bike hangar, as part of its ongoing efforts to create greener streets where local people can realise the mental and physical benefits of active travel.
With each lockable hangar having room for six cycles, the arrival of the 500th hangar later this month will mean there are 3,000 spaces for residents to park their bikes on the street. This is on top of the 2,500 spaces that are also available for free on council estates, as well as more than 2,000 Sheffield stands on Islington’s streets.
To ensure that more people can benefit from safe, easy-to-use, accessible cycle parking, there are plans to introduce at least another 1,200 on-street parking spaces over the next two years. Reservations for cycle parking spaces can be made on the council’s website.
The installation of cycle parking spaces across the borough is just one of the ways that the council is creating a greener, more welcoming borough for all where streets are safer. A total of seven low-traffic neighbourhoods and 35 School Streets have already been introduced, and plans are already in place to make Islington an even greener, healthier place for all, including through the introduction of Liveable Neighbourhoods and School Streets at secondary schools.
Cllr Rowena Champion, Islington Council’s Executive Member for Environment, Air Quality, and Transport, said: “As well as being enjoyable, choosing to take more journeys on foot or by cycle can help you save money, lower your carbon footprint, and enjoy the physical and mental health benefits of exercising regularly.
“Our 500 on-street bike hangars are really important in our efforts to create a greener Islington, because they help make cycling a more convenient option for local people.
“We’re determined to make Islington a greener, more welcoming place for all, where local people have cleaner air to breathe, and making environmentally-friendly modes of travel easier is at the heart of achieving this.”
As part of its ongoing Go Zero campaign – which highlights the positive steps that local people can take to lower their emissions and save money – the council is encouraging people across the borough to embrace the benefits of active travel.
Free Bikeability sessions are put on regularly so that local people of all ages can learn key cycle skills. Islington’s Try Before You Bike scheme also lets residents and local businesses try cycling and pay off the cost of owning a bike over a number of months, or return the bike at no additional cost.
The council’s free Dr Bike sessions, which take place on the first Tuesday of every month, also give local people the opportunity to have their cycles repaired, and find out more about how they can do their own bike maintenance.
