[NSW] Free 4 Weeks E-Bike Rental in Green Square and Surrounding Suburbs, City of Sydney @ NSW Government

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niknah on 03/08/2022 - 19:18 cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au (1710 clicks)
Last edited 03/08/2022 - 19:49 by 1 other user

You’re eligible to apply for a free e-bike rental if you:

• live in the Green Square area – check your address
• are 18 years or over
• want to lease the e-bike for personal use (not as part of a business or paid employment).

The City of Sydney will pay for the first 4 weeks of your lease. After this, you will have the option to continue the lease at your expense or to end the lease.

This offer is open to 160 people. The free lease offer will be closed once 160 leases have been granted.

You may only apply for 1 lease offer per person.

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• 

  Leho on 03/08/2022 - 20:19

  +18

  or legalise private e-scooters like most other states 🙄🙄

  • 

    Ghogger on 03/08/2022 - 22:53

    +3

    Not after a pointless 12 month trial and then another 12 months of debating regulations 🤡

    • 

      Leho on 03/08/2022 - 23:37

      +4

      Personal opinion (long time scooter rider):

      17+
      Car P's or higher license
      Registration + license plates
      Full insurance

      Basically like a motorbike but there is no way that the government can't deny those are the safest rules 😂

      • 

        Dr Fruit on 04/08/2022 - 08:32

        +5

        Obviously safety should be the highest priority. But wouldn’t the cost, qualifications needed and bureaucracy, paperwork etc make it much less attainable/practical?

        E-scooters are meant to be last mile transportation that’s easy, affordable, and accessible. That’s the main reason for Neutron/Beam’s success in Brisbane imo, is that everyone can literally ride them within 5 minutes by downloading an app.

        If a person has to get a license, get registration, get their own insurance policy etc just to ride an e-scooter, I suspect a lot of them would just ditch the idea altogether and just drive. These things pretty much defeat the whole usability concept of e-scooters.

      • 

        Dr Fruit on 04/08/2022 - 08:36

        imo it would make the most sense to have studies done that can prove with hard evidence whether or not these things are safe operating under the current laissez-faire model (eg. In Brisbane) with minimal government oversight.

        People obviously can testify from personal experience about how “oh scooter riders are so dangerous, they almost hit me this one time” or “oh I saw on the news once that someone rode it onto the freeway”. But numbers don’t lie. If the evidence shows it’s safe, then let there be scooters. If it shows that they’re not, then put in more stringent regulations like you suggested (eg. Age, license, rego, insurance requirements).

        • 

          Leho on 04/08/2022 - 08:43

          @Dr Fruit: Those are some great points, although my reasoning for plates and insurance is because private inexperienced scooter riders are the ones that give escooters a bad look. For someone that has been riding for years, they are able to control and be generally safer on escooters. That's why I believe that the trial is only useful for spreading knowledge to people that usually wouldn't even know escooters exist. Requirements would probably stop the ones that just want to have a try, and allow experienced riders that can be bothered to register 🤷‍♂️

        • 

          Janko on 04/08/2022 - 08:47

          +1

          @Dr Fruit: Studies simply prove whatever needs to be proved.

  • 

    Niko123456 on 04/08/2022 - 08:26

    The truth is no one is interested in actually using scooters or hired bikes. It's why you see one person riding a bike to every 5 bikes clogging the footpath. Scooters are worse.

    Not enough people live locally that they want to bring their own vehicle on the train with them.

  • 

    [Deactivated] on 04/08/2022 - 15:17

    "…most other states…"

    Really? Legalised in which states for which riding environments?

    • 

      Leho on 04/08/2022 - 16:01

      correct me if I'm wrong, but i believe that private ones are only illegal in NSW and VIC, with wattage&speed limits in other states

      • 

        [Deactivated] on 04/08/2022 - 19:38

        I won't be correcting you as I simply don't know the answer. 😉

        But I do know that the answer to what's legal, where (jurisdiction) and in what environments (eg road surfaces vs footpaths vs private property etc) is more nuanced than @Leho's response would suggest.

        • 

          Leho on 04/08/2022 - 20:41

          @[Deactivated]: 🤷‍♂️ why not just let priv scooter riders use bike paths and roads? I ride my mantis 10 duo on the road and I keep up with cars easily 🤣

          • 

            [Deactivated] on 04/08/2022 - 21:37

            @Leho:

            why not just let priv scooter riders use bike paths and roads?

            Scroll down here.

            Kaabo and then other e-scooter manufacturers/distributors need to do the work to have them recognised as RVSA vehicles.

            • 

              Leho on 04/08/2022 - 21:44

              @[Deactivated]: It's a bit silly really, ebikes don't need to be registered but they can go wherever? Just because it's a scooter it now has to have 100 regulations and checks on it?

              • 

                [Deactivated] on 04/08/2022 - 21:53

                @Leho: What has registration got to do with it?!

                There are a number of vehicles - including basic bicycles and horses - that are authorised to use roads without registration.

                Back to ebikes for a moment. Ebikes that are compliant with EN 15194:2009 are on the RVSA list as recognised vehicles. Again… registration not required.

• 

  scud70 on 03/08/2022 - 20:40

  -3

  Aaah Green square… The grave yard for all the previous bike rental companies… Used to walk past the carcasses everyday for years….

  • 

    [Deactivated] on 04/08/2022 - 15:38

    -1

    Rental bikes ≠ Bikeshare bikes. Why is this so hard for people to understand?

    Like rental cars, rental boats, rental housing, rental appliances (etc etc) the person renting one of these bikes signs a legally binding rental agreement which outlines their responsibilities and financial penalties if they fail to comply with the agreement.

• 

  dontpanic on 04/08/2022 - 02:05

  Dammit. I'm literally 50m outside the zone.

• 

  onon0402 on 04/08/2022 - 08:56

  More rental bikes dumped in the river. A repeat of history in 2017.

  Private e-scooters are much cheaper, easier to carry, no need to find parking. In terms of safety, a bad e-bike rider can definitely do more harm than a bad e-scooter rider. Just go to Darling Harbour and look at all those food delivery e-bikes flying pass pedestrians on a crowded foot path.

  • 

    [Deactivated] on 04/08/2022 - 13:59

    More rental bikes dumped in the river. A repeat of history in 2017.

    Rental bikes ≠ Bikeshare bikes

• 

  poochi on 04/08/2022 - 10:06

  "The City of Sydney will pay for the first 4 weeks of the rental, after this you can continue or cancel the rental."

  Why is the council subsidizing these failed businesses that clutter the streets with their crap?

  • 

    niknah on 04/08/2022 - 12:28

    +1

    They have been building lots of new cycleways around the city & Green Square area. I'm guessing that they want people to try them out.

    • 

      [Deactivated] on 04/08/2022 - 13:57

      Former resident of Green Square chiming in. We moved out of the area just six months ago after 18+ years living there, and seeing the population grow from 986 when we arrived to ~40K when we left (and on track to hit 50K by 2025).

      Your guess us absolutely the council's strategy.

      City of Sydney is going hard on cycleways and public transport friendliness for Green Square. Encouraging ebike use removes additional barriers to cycling adoption ("errrr….hills", "errr….arriving at work hot and sweaty") and further incentivising with financial benefit seems smart.

      • 

        onon0402 on 04/08/2022 - 14:42

        Current resident of Rosebery. Growing population in any area is unavoidable unless you ban developers from building new, massive apartment blocks. The point is whether the road infrastructure is well (or poorly) designed to cope with the growth.

        Building more cycleways is the first step but the problem with bikes (or e-bikes) is that they are bulky and need to find spaces to park. Most of the new apartments do not have enough common area for 1 bike parking per unit, let alone multiple bikes per household. And, if you work in the CBD, good luck finding space to park your bike.

        There is no reason for not legalising / legislating e-scooter to share the cycleways. They are much more convenient than e-bikes imho.

        • 

          [Deactivated] on 04/08/2022 - 15:13

          +1

          @onon0402:

          Current resident of Rosebery. Growing population in any area is unavoidable unless you ban developers from building new, massive apartment blocks. The point is whether the road infrastructure is well (or poorly) designed to cope with the growth.

          Absolutely, although (for all of their failures) City of Sydney is trying to do something positive by NOT approving apartments with massive carparks; by increasing car-share spaces; by mandating e-bike charging points, secure bike cages in buildings, end-of-trip facilities etc…as a means to limit passenger vehicle movement on residential streets.

          And, if you work in the CBD, good luck finding space to park your bike.

          (Points taken re limited residential parking for bikes….but I think that's improving). In terms of the CBD, especially parking, that definitely needs a strategy and solution. I've been fortunate to work for - and deal with - companies with excellent end-of-trip facilities, secure parking etc

          There is no reason for not legalising / legislating e-scooter to share the cycleways. They are much more convenient than e- bikes imho

          "No reason"? Not exactly.

          Most of the City of Sydney cycleway system has been integrated onto city roads/streets. Vehicles which travel on public roads/streets have to comply with the Road Vehicle Standards Act 2018 (RVSA) and be on the RVSA vehicles list. E-scooters are not an RVSA vehicle (right up there with gold carts, mobility scooters, skateboards, non-compliant ebikes etc). Once you've solved THAT hurdle then there will be "no reason".

          • 

            onon0402 on 04/08/2022 - 15:56

            @[Deactivated]:

            Vehicles which travel on public roads/streets have to comply with the Road Vehicle Standards Act 2018 (RVSA) and be on the RVSA vehicles list. E-scooters are not an RVSA vehicle

            Yes, it's understandable and that's why I think they should legislate it in addition to just legalise it. Like another ozbargainer (Leho) said, registration, licensing, insurance… do whatever they think is "safe" enough to let people commute on e-scooters, rather than just ignoring and banning it completely.

            • 

              [Deactivated] on 04/08/2022 - 21:46

              @onon0402: It's up to the manufacturers/distributors to apply to have their devices recognised as under RVSA vehicles and added to the Register of Approved Vehicles.

              The government isn't going to do it on their behalf just because we think e-scooters are cool/fun/efficient/whatever.

              And so then comes the harsh truth around some of the inherent safety challenges with scooters. No manufacturer or distributor is doing to waste $$$ for a seemingly guaranteed rejection.

  • 

    [Deactivated] on 04/08/2022 - 13:47

    Why is the council subsidizing these failed businesses that clutter the streets with their crap?

    Thanks for your question, Karen.

    I think you need to familiarise yourself with the details before ranting any further. These ARE NOT bike-share vehicles and none of the companies (Lug and Carrie, Sydney Ebike Rentals, Zoomo, Jot Bikes) operate bike-share services.

    The offer is for people who wish to rent (and personally store/secure/charge) an e-bike for their personal use.

• 

  jayjay1980 on 04/08/2022 - 10:17

  e-scooters are great as long as the company leasing them have insurance to cover accidents at a bare minimum to operate.

  private use e-scooters and this should extend to bike as well, should have insurance when travelling on public roads to cover accidents with pedestrians just like cars but this is more tricky to enforce and sell.

• 

  andylch on 04/08/2022 - 16:05

  Hello,

  Thank you for your interest in the City of Sydney’s e-bike rental program for eligible Green Square residents.

  Unfortunately, we have now reached our maximum allocation of rentals and we’re unable to offer you an e-bike rental.

  The City of Sydney is running several other cycling programs which you may be interested in:

  Bike Buddies: free 1-on-1 guided rides and cycling skills
  Cycling in the City
  Guided rides
  Free bike tune ups
  Free bike helpline
  Free cycling guide and map
  Free balance bike clinics

  The City of Sydney is also constructing new cycleways and implementing other initiatives and programs to support people to cycle.

  You can find out more about our local programs on the City of Sydney website: Green Square by Bike.

  Thank you again for your interest.
  Kind regards

  cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au

• 

  andylch on 04/08/2022 - 18:27

  +1

  Anyone has got the e-bike already? We can have a bikie meet up in Green Square areas LOL