Bike back to work – 30 Days of Biking: Day 22

I saw a surprising update from Transport for Greater Manchester today:

It turns out that TfGM are offering a free bikes to people who have recently found work in the Greater Manchester area. Not only that, but they also include accessories, a helmet and access to TfGM’s cycling training and maintenance courses.

This is a great way to get people into cycling to work routinely and help with the costs of travel in the early days of a job. Cycling to work can also help productivity as well as offering low running costs.

As an extension to this, I’d like to see cycle training being offered as one of the courses at Jobcentres and perhaps even access to bikes for travel to job interviews. It would certainly help towards ‘normalising’ cycling in Manchester and show those looking for work that there are alternative ways to get around.

Last year, Jonnie bought a bike from one of the scheme suppliers: Bespoke Cycle Recycling.

They’re a unique social enterprise that’s offers people who need a “second chance” in life the opportunity to learn new skills. It’s great to see them being supported by TfGM too.

(I know the latest updates have been a bit light, but I’ve got work to do!)