Earlier this month I became one of the Mayor’s ‘pioneers’ and signed up to the London cycle hire scheme.  Paris’ ‘Velib’ has been a great success, but I never thought a similar project would materialise in London.  Then, in June, cycle hire stations sprang up seemingly overnight all over central London, and before I knew it, the scheme was up and running.

Unfortunately I ended up waiting 3 weeks for my access key to arrive.  I kept a mental note of all the times I could’ve used a hire bike in that time and was surprised how many missed opportunities presented themselves.  My key finally appeared on the 24^th August, and on the 25^th I headed for a docking station with the intention of cycling up to a client meeting in St Pauls.  I left myself 50 minutes to travel the 2 miles, and was glad I did.

The first docking station refused to release any bikes, the lights remaining resolutely red.  I headed for the next station and was relieved to nab the last remaining bike.  Riding to the meeting was joyous. I cycle six days a week, but these bikes are so far removed from what I’m used to, it was almost like being a beginner again.  The design and gearing encourages a sedate pace and I bumbled along just delighted to be in the saddle and not on the Tube.  In fact riding in a suit, with my satchel perched on front of me felt rather European. Thankfully the relentless traffic reminded me I was in London and not Copenhagen or Amsterdam.

The parking process punctured my enthusiasm though.  I’ve purchased Malcolm Barclay’s excellent ‘Cycle Deluxe’ app for the iPhone, and used it to find a station close to St. Pauls before heading out.  The app informed me that there were four spaces available.  Unfortunately by the time I arrived there were none.  A frantic ride around central London ensued and I visited a further five locations, each progressively further from my destination, before I finally found a free dock.  By the time I got to the meeting I was sweaty, stressed and unimpressed.

Unlike Paris, London’s bikes have not been equipped with locks, and although each half hour access period is free, keep a bike for longer – say the duration of a meeting, and things quickly become expensive.  I can see the logic in this, but if you can’t find a free bike dock then you have a problem.  One blogger reported finding a bike abandoned in the city this week, the (presumably wealthy) rider having abandoned it in frustration.

This is a fundamental drawback of London’s scheme, bikes are not being adequately re-distributed throughout the day, meaning that locations in central London tend to fill up in the morning and empty in the evening.  Fine for commuters, but the scheme isn’t really designed for commuters, and until they iron out this glaring issue I simply can’t risk taking a bike to a meeting.