Rides on London’s public bike-rental network have hit record levels in each of the past nine months as subway strikes blight the city’s public transport system.
An all-time annual high of 12 million trips were taken on Santander Cycles in the last year, according to Transport for London data. On strike days, thousands of commuters get to work using the hired bikes, which can be picked up and dropped off at different docking stations around the city.
“The cycle hire scheme plays an important role in ensuring Londoners have as many transport options as possible,” a TfL spokesperson said. “During strike action, TfL provides additional staffed Santander Cycles hubs to guarantee customers can hire and dock bikes.”
About 10,000 London Underground workers will walk out on Tuesday (June 21) in a row over pensions and job losses, part of the UK’s biggest outbreak of nationwide public transport industrial action since 1989.
The strikes could cost the economy almost £100 million ($170 million), with London dealt the biggest blow, according to the Centre for Economics and Business Research.
On June 6, it was a familiar scene across the capital as workers returned from the Platinum Jubilee holiday. The Tube’s Victoria, Circle and Waterloo & City lines were closed due to strikes, with limited services on the Piccadilly, Central, District and Bakerloo routes.