A school in south Dublin has begin working with University College Dublin to provide a fleet of bikes that parents and children can use for their commute to and from the school.
The bikes include cargo bikes, e-bikes and folding bikes with the selection aimed at helping parents to meet their needs during their day, including using the folding bike for the journey to and from school and then taking it on public transport when they travel to work.
The new scheme at the Educate Together National School in Harold’s Cross is known as a 'bike library', which allows parents to borrow the bikes and then return them. It is being run by Francesco Pilla, professor of Smart Cities in UCD.
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"It's about giving a choice to parents when they are travelling to school with their kids, a choice to use a bike rather than a car," he told journalist Colman O'Sullivan in RTE News.
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"As e-cargo bikes are quite expensive, I think that creates a barrier because parents or families don’t feel like investing such an amount of money….but I think once they try them and feel the convenience, how it’s easy to go around and bring kids to school they might want to invest".
The new 'bike library' has been rolled out under iChange, which is funded by the European Commission, with Science Foundation Ireland also supporting. The bikes are supplied by UCD via Bleeper Bike, which provides bike to the university.
The university is hopeful the scheme will be rolled out in other schools. And while cargo bikes are expensive, it is also hoped those parents who try the bikes will see the benefits of using them and will invest in them to replace their car journeys on the morning school run.
