Ruth Cadbury MP was quoted as saying that e-bikes will see "big growth" in the UK after an All Party Parliamentary Cycling Group meeting, but wants the government to back this with incentives and grants to ensure the increased uptake is maximised.
Are electric bikes good for exercise?
In the APPCG meeting, figures presented by the Bicycle Association shown that the cycling industry brings in around £5.4 billion to the UK economy each year, and contributes £3.1 billion to the UK economy in health benefits, £430 million in congestion benefits and £230 million in pollution benefits.
Speaking to Cycling Industry News after the APPCG meeting, Cadbury, the Labour MP for Brentford and Isleworth, said: “The big growth will be in e-bikes.
“The question is the level of growth in the UK, which will be lower than our neighbouring European countries unless the government provides some real incentive, like a grants scheme.
“We’ve seen some positive moves in terms of how the Cycle to Work scheme will operate, which looks like it is going to be extended so people will be able to buy a decent quality e-bike on it. But there’s some work to do; the Cycle to Work scheme isn’t applicable for a lot of people."
She also added: “The industry needs to advertise and promote ease of e-bikes in places other than bike shops. You need to have already decided to buy a bike before you walk through the door of a bike shop.
“My point of view is, they need to be in places where people might be thinking of buying a car, or community or town centre events. Places where people can ride a bike around and try it for themselves. Most people take the plunge for something new once they’ve tried it out.”
Our co-chairs @RuthCadbury
— APPCG (@allpartycycling) July 25, 2019
and @AndrewSelous have written to @grantshapps to welcome him on his appointment
as Secretary of State @transportgovuk, and urge him to be a strong advocate for cycling and walking pic.twitter.com/8cxEQeeGWH
Cadbury and the MP for South West Bedfordshire Andrew Selous also written to the new Transport Secretary Grant Shapps to urge him to be a strong advocate for cycling and walking and back this with investment. They also asked Shapps to attend parliament's Cycling Showcase event on the 10th of September.
