Santander has extended their sponsorship of London’s cycle hire programme until 2025, with the launch of new e-bikes and additional areas set to be introduced.
The extension of Santander’s sponsorship will support Transport for London (TfL) as it moves forward with planned investment in cycle hire. The next three years will see Santander Cycles expanded to new areas of London and the introduction of around 500 e-bikes into the scheme from next summer.
According to TfL, the expansion will help to break down the barriers that stop some people from cycling, including fitness, age and journey length.
Planned modernisation will also include major updates to the Santander Cycles app, cycle hire terminals and back-office systems that will enable TfL to deliver flexibility for customers.
Furthermore, a permanent NHS discount for annual memberships is now being developed as a continued show of appreciation.
“Santander Cycle hire is key to this, so I’m delighted that TfL will be rolling out the scheme’s first e-bikes in summer next year and expanding it to cover new parts of our city thanks to Santander’s continued support.
“I’m so pleased that our city’s heroic keyworkers have accessed more than 100,000 free hires since we introduced the offer in March last year. I’m delighted that TfL is now developing a permanent discount for NHS workers as a token of appreciation.”
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Nathan Bostock, CEO of Santander UK, added: “Since our partnership with TfL began in 2015, Santander Cycles has continued to thrive and is a great example of our commitment to supporting the communities in which we operate.
“Over the years we have worked hard to ensure Santander Cycles plays an important part in keeping communities connected and mobile in a healthy, sustainable and affordable way.
“From the creation of the hire app, the installation of the green safety Beryl Laserlights, to the introduction of contactless payment systems, we are proud to have brought innovation to the scheme and crucially helped people and businesses prosper along the way. We look forward to working together with TfL on the exciting plans we have for the fantastic scheme over the coming years.”
