Get On Your ebike! The New Membership Way To Get Around Town

A Swapfiet membership should persuade you to ditch four wheels for two, especially if you’re a fair weather rider, says Lucy Cleland

Get On Your ebike! The New Membership Way To Get Around Town

Parting is such sweet sorry. When the man and the van arrived to take away my Swapfiets Dutch electric bicycle after six months together, I must admit I shed a tear. It had completely transformed the way I got around the city.

The freedom of having an electric bike knows no bounds – here are all the best bits: a) you end up spending far less money as if I were to go on the Tube, bus, train etc, I might just have to buy a coffee and a pastry; or a magazine. Or dash into Boots for my favourite lip-gloss. No longer! I’m on my bike, I have places to go. 2) It’s also an excellent way to walk the dog if you’re pushed for time. We can be up and have done a circuit of the park in 10 minutes and back for a cup of tea and breakfast before the children are out of bed. I’m currently researching electric bike dog baskets too, for when the little paws get tired. 3) You can discover parts of the city you just didn’t know before, cobbled yards, riverside tracks, streets of Georgian splendour – London is a wonder. 4) Because of the model of bikes it comes with an in-built double locks, including a battery locks, so I feel super safe leaving it locked up. It’s virtually impossible to steal. But I guess never say never…

My journey to work takes me two miles along the Thames and being able to watch the sun set over the water, the graceful rowers on the river, the punters with their pints makes me feel like I’m both immersed in the humanity of London life yet also slightly detached from it. Two wheels give you that privileged position.

And now the city has really upped its game when it comes to bike lanes – the proliferation of them has been a fantastic reaction to the pandemic and a real reason to get out of your car (I know car owners, of which I’m one too, can feel exasperated that their lanes have been cut so significantly, but I think this is a future that we should feel glad about – the thought each household should have a heavy, carbon emitting machine to get around with just doesn’t wash in this new age where of energy reduction).

And the joy with membership model of ebike rental with Swapfiets is that if anything goes wrong, you get on the app and you’ll have a new bike or a fixed one within 48 hours. There are two membership options to suit your needs and both you can cancel with a month’s notice. It’s also good if you don’t want to shell out for a new ebike (which can cost thousands) that you might not ride in the winter.

I’m a total ebike evangelist and I now I’m on the hunt for a full-time model to come and live with me at home, so we never have to part again.

Ebike membership from £59.90 per month. swapfiets.co.uk

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