Delivered by Beryl in partnership with Leeds City Council and the West Yorkshire Combined Authority, the fully electric bike hire service will double the number of bays, increase the service area and add more than 200 new e-bikes by the end of March.

The expansion will boost access to employment, leisure, retail and academic opportunities for thousands of people as we head into spring. The scheme will move beyond the city centre and into more residential areas such as Chapel Allerton and Meanwood. It will also expand to student areas such as Hyde Park, providing even better links between student accommodation and the university campuses. 

To help make the scheme even more cost effective, a new 50 Minute Bundle offer is also now available via the Beryl app. The offer allows users to buy 50 minutes for £8 but waives the £1 unlock fee every time they ride and allows the minutes to be used any time within 12 months of purchase. It follows the recent launch of the 100 Minute Bundle offer and is designed to maximise flexibility for customers and help make sustainable transport even more affordable.* 

Beryl CEO, Phil Ellis, said: “With the warmer weather and longer days on the horizon this is a fantastic time for the Leeds City Bikes scheme to move beyond the city centre and really break down the barriers to active travel for thousands more people. 

“Leeds City Bikes really are a fun and simple way to travel sustainably, with the extra power helping to make occasionally hilly terrain more accessible to some riders and allowing them to undertake longer journeys.

“They’re also ideal for commuting, with the electric boost reducing effort levels and allowing you to arrive at your workplace clean, fresh and ready to go.

“By swapping the car for a Leeds City Bike journey you’re not only boosting your own health and fitness, you’re also helping to reduce congestion and harmful carbon emissions, so why not give it a try.”

Councillor Helen Hayden, Executive Member for Sustainable Development and Infrastructure, said: “Our ambition is for Leeds to be a city where you don’t need to own a car. With the Leeds City Bikes scheme expansion into more suburbs of Leeds, we’re giving people choices to integrate and access different transport modes to choose the most suitable mode for their journey.

“We want Leeds City Bikes to be accessible for as many people as possible and be available for as many journeys as possible, whether it’s nipping to the shops, visiting a friend or just for pleasure. I hope the new affordable Minute Bundles encourage people to give it a go!”

The £2.86 million Leeds City Bikes scheme has been made possible thanks to funding secured through the West Yorkshire Mayoral devolution deal.

Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire, said: “It’s wonderful to see more e-bikes available to hire outside the city centre and I’m sure people across Leeds will be making the most of them over the coming weeks and months.

“New payment options are being introduced all the time which is helping bring down the cost of hiring one.

“Introducing e-bike hire is part of our work to create a better-connected region – they’re a great way to get around, boost our health and do our bit for the environment.”

The Beryl Annual Rider Report for 2023 showed that, of all the riders asked, 96% said convenience and 92% said cost was either somewhat important or very important to them when using e-bikes. 

Hiring a bike is as easy as “app, tap and roll”: download the Beryl app to find your nearest e-bike, tap your phone near the handlebars to unlock it and off you go.

Since the scheme launched in September 2023, it has already generated nearly 14,000 journeys across nearly 36,000 kilometres.

This first phase of the rollout saw 200 bikes and 20 bays installed across the city centre and along key routes to the south and north west. Further bikes and bays are set to be delivered in the summer.

For more information, visit beryl.cc/scheme/leeds

*Minute Bundle offers will run alongside existing payment options, including Pay As You Ride as well as the Flexi, Commuter and Day Passes but are not currently applicable to the Beryl Student discount.