Funding helps to build a cycling friendly nation

Twenty-four organisations across Scotland have had a great start to the year having been awarded funding for projects and facilities that will get their staff cycling. The money is the final instalment of £1 million funding from our Cycle Friendly Employer programme, provided by the Scottish Government, which focuses on making cycling more accessible for commuters to incorporate it into their daily lives.

£268,643 awarded in this round will join match funding of £117,887 so that a total of £386,530 will be invested into supporting people to leave the car at home and commute to work by bike instead.

The money will be distributed across 27 worksites to provide cycle parking, shower and changing facilities, electric bikes and push bikes.

‘Bikes and Trikes for Highland Home Carers’ is just one of the projects that will benefit from the funding. The partnership project between Highland Carers, Cairn Medical Practice and several community care trusts has been awarded £8,000 for folding and e-bikes which will be used to overcome a number of travel barriers including getting stuck in slow traffic, struggling to find parking spaces, inadequate public transport or not being able to drive. Carers who usually drive or get lifts between home visits will now have access to pedal and e-bikes, supporting their physical health and mental wellbeing and significantly improving homecare delivery.

Nathalie Libera, Development Officer at Cycling Scotland said “Bikes and Trikes for Highland Home Carers is a fantastic pilot project, presenting an amazing opportunity for carers who use cars for frequent and familiar journeys to make more of those journeys by bike. There’s great scope to expand the model across the country and other professions that involve a high volume of single occupancy car journeys. This is a wonderful example of effective partnership work across sectors, and how a few motivated individuals can really get the ball rolling on exciting cycling projects.”

Mick Heath from Cairn Medical Practice said “The ‘Bikes and Trikes for Highland Home Carers’ project has been an absolute delight to lead. It's a great example of how partnership projects can really fly when you bring together a team of able and committed members.  I'm confident that we'll prove that e-bikes for home care professionals will be a huge game changer. Everyone will win: staff, managers and service users.”

Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity Michael Matheson said: “I’m delighted that 24 organisations across Scotland will share £268k provided by the Scottish Government to encourage commuting by cycling. There are numerous environmental and health benefits that can be gained by choosing to walk or cycle and this scheme will help more people choose to leave the car at home and make more sustainable journeys by bike.

“This support will progress our vision to develop an Active Nation, where more people choose to walk and cycle than ever before. It will provide additional amenities for 14,900 workers across Scotland, joining the 52,000 who benefitted from the previous round of this innovative project by Cycling Scotland.”

 

Interested in the Cycle Friendly Employer programme and how your and your team it could benefit? Find out more here.

 

The employers funded in this round are:

1. Ardmel Automation Limited
2. Ceteris Scotland Limited
3. Dundee Rep and Scottish Dance Theatre
4. Falkirk Council
5. Forth Valley Sensory Centre
6. Film City Glasgow
7. Gates Power Transmission
8. Glasgow CHSCP
9. High Life Highland
10. Highland Home Carers Ltd
11. Historic Environment Scotland
12. Improvement Service
13. Keppie Design
14. Midlothian Council
15. Neilston Development Trust
16. NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde
17. NHS Highland
18. NHS National Services Scotland
19. Norton Park SCIO
20. Police Service of Scotland
21. SCARF
22. Scottish Canals
23. West Dunbartonshire CVS
24. Young Enterprise Scotland