Belfast Bikes, also known for sponsorship reasons as Just Eat Belfast Bikes as is a public bicycle rental scheme which has operated in the city of

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

since April 2015. At its launch, the scheme, which was then sponsored by

Coca-Cola HBC Coca-Cola HBC AG also known as Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company or just Coca-Cola Hellenic is the world's third-largest Coca-Cola anchor bottler in terms of volume with sales of more than 2 billion unit cases. Coca-Cola HBC's shares are primari ...

, used 300 Unisex bicycles with 30 stations.

Belfast City Council Belfast City Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach Bhéal Feirste) is the local authority with responsibility for part of the city of Belfast, the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland. The Council serves an estimated population of (), the ...

owns the scheme. The

Department for Regional Development The Department for Infrastructure (DfI, ga, An Roinn Bonneagair; Ulster-Scots: ''Depairment fur Infrastructure'') is a devolved Northern Ireland government department in the Northern Ireland Executive. Up until May 2016, the department wa ...

(DRD) provided initial capital funding for the scheme as part of their Active Travel Demonstration Projects budget. NSL is looking after the daily operation of the scheme, while Nextbike is responsible for the bikes.

Expansion and development

Starting initially with 30 stations, the number has increased to 45, and has expanded beyond the city centre area. This includes two stations at Queen's University Belfast (the cost of which was covered by the University), one close to the Titanic Belfast Convention Centre, and at the Mater, Royal Victoria and Belfast City Hospitals (the cost covered by the

Belfast Health and Social Care Trust The Belfast Health and Social Care Trust (BHSCT) is a health organisation covering Belfast, Northern Ireland. The trust is one of five new trusts which were created on 1 April 2007 by the then Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safe ...

). Locations in more residential areas (

Shankill Road The Shankill Road () is one of the main roads leading through West Belfast, in Northern Ireland. It runs through the working-class, predominantly loyalist, area known as the Shankill. The road stretches westwards for about from central Belfast ...

, Duncairn and the new

CS Lewis Square CS, C-S, C.S., Cs, cs, or cs. may refer to: Job titles * Chief Secretary (Hong Kong) * Chief superintendent, a rank in the British and several other police forces * Company secretary, a senior position in a private sector company or public sec ...

) is also a new feature of the expanding scheme. Plans for expansion are ratified by vote by

Strategic Policy and Resources Committee.

Sponsorship

At its launch the scheme was sponsored by

for a three-year period and was known as Coca-Cola Zero Belfast Bikes. In April 2018 this sponsorship deal ended and after a tendering process

Just Eat Just Eat (formerly known legally as Just Eat plc) is an online food order and delivery brand of Netherlands-based Just Eat Takeaway.com, and a former food delivery company. Just Eat was founded as a separate company in 2001 in Kolding, Denmark ...

were named as the new sponsors in August 2018 with the scheme to be branded as Just Eat Belfast Bikes.

Costs

To use the system, users need to take out a subscription, which allows the subscriber an unlimited number of rentals. Subscribers can get an Annual Hire Card costing £25, or a 3-day ticket costing £6. Users also authorise Belfast Bikes to charge £120 from their credit card if the bike is not returned. The first half-hour of every journey is free, after that a service charge applies. See below for pricing structure: In response to a Freedom of Information request, Belfast City Council published financial figures relating to subsidies to the scheme. In its first year, the Council subsidised it to the tune of £173,000. From April 2016 to April 2017, this increased to £215,000, despite a Business Case showing subsidies would reduce from £56,440 (April 2015 to April 2016), £23,050 (April 2016 - April 2017) and return a profit of £10,730 (April 2017 - April 2018).

Stations

See here for a map of the current Belfast Bike docking stations.

References

External links