We are proud to announce Good Cycles is a recipient in the TAC Road Safety Grant Program, receiving $50,000 to deliver training and education programs for new e-bike users accessing shared bike hubs within social and affordable housing developments.
Announced by the Minister for Roads and Road Safety Melissa Horne, this funding will support our hubs at the Building Communities affordable housing developments in Flemington, Prahran and Brighton, managed in partnership with RideKola.
The shared eBikes are supplied with helmets, baskets, and security provided by a Bluetooth lock system operated by the RideKola smartphone app, similar to a private fleet of Lime bikes. All bikes come with battery chargers for use in the eBike Hub and have been fitted with lights, chain guards, skirt guards and mud guards to enable rides in everyday clothing, in all weather conditions and for any work, recreation or shopping purpose. The bikes are serviced by Good Cycles and regular onsite visits are conducted.
The eBike Hubs are offered alongside practical educational programs to ensure residents, who may not be culturally familiar with cycling, develop the skills and confidence to use the eBikes and navigate local roads safely for a range of trips. All residents are sent a Welcome Pack to introduce the eBikes Hubs and options for use. The Hubs are supported with ‘How-To’ and ‘Tips’ posters around the charging stations.
There are 1,100 homes across the three sites, with half dedicated to social and affordable housing residents. Recent ABS and RACV data shows that the average Australian household now spends close to $450 per week on transport expenses, an increase of 9.4% last year and the lowest income earners spend more than 20% of their income on transport. During a cost-of-living crisis, the eBike Hubs are having a direct positive benefit for all residents within the Building Communities developments.
By encouraging residents to travel by bike, these hubs are also helping lower emissions and enhance the livability of communities. eBikes produce 40 times less emissions than a car and take up less than one sixth of public space.
This program also has the support of Bicycle Network, who brings their expertise in encouraging the residents to use e-bikes to complete short trips safely and confidently.
The TAC Road Safety Grant Program supports community groups and organisations to develop and implement effective community-based road safety projects that align with the TAC’s priority areas and support the aims of the Victorian Road Safety Strategy.
Embedding a culture of road safety within the community is a key focus of the Victorian Road Safety Strategy, which aims to halve road deaths and significantly reduce serious injuries by 2030.
Our eBike Hubs are making a real difference in Melbourne communities and we are thankful for the TAC grant support that will continue to grow the impact of these e-bike Hubs, to both the residents of these developments and the environment around them.
