Mayor urged to help businesses swap from diesel vans to cargo bikes

Hina Bokhari says businesses need to be incentivised to change to cargo bikes

Businesses need help swapping diesel vans for cargo bikes to help ease London's air pollution, a report has said.

The London Assembly said the bikes offer an "excellent solution" for transporting goods across London as they would "reduce congestion".

The report calls for mayor Sadiq Khan to provide money for bike-sharing infrastructure and training schemes.

His office said it would "continue to explore" increasing cargo bikes.

Conducted by the London Assembly's economy committee, the report lists 13 recommendations to help shift away from diesel-powered vehicles towards cargo bikes.

These include the development of a training and accreditation scheme and the rollout of cargo bike hangars and parking.

The report also calls for Transport for London (TfL) to ensure there is an opportunity to purchase cargo bikes as part of the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) scrappage scheme.

Committee chair Hina Bokhari said: "The whole point of this is about incentivising - it's making sure that businesses can see the options."

She added: "Cargo bikes can be powered by electric motors, which are emission-free and produce no noise pollution, making them ideal for dense urban areas. They are also highly manoeuvrable and can easily navigate through narrow streets and traffic".

Brian Whiting says he feels good when riding his bike

Brian Whiting, operations manager at the homeless outreach charity Under One Sky, has been using a cargo bike to help with his deliveries.

"It's quicker than the van, I don't have to worry about parking. I can get anything I want into it, if there's busy traffic I can take an alternative route."

Meanwhile, TfL's cargo bike action plan suggests cargo bikes could replace up to 17% of van-driven kilometres in central London by 2030.

Responding to the committee's report, Will Norman, the mayor's walking and cycling commissioner, said: "Cargo bikes can be real game changers when it comes to delivering freight and servicing trips.

"We will continue to explore how we can grow the use of cargo bikes on our road, to help both the environment and the health of Londoners, and build a better, safer, greener London for everyone."

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