Improved bike storage facilities have been provided at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.
The funding for the new facilities has been provided by Edinburgh and Lothians Health Foundation who provided £90,000 to match the same amount provided by Sustrans and Transport Scotland as part of the Spaces for People programme.
The funding will be used to support active travel for NHS Lothian staff who use bikes as an alternative to cars and public transport.
The new bike shelter is only one of several projects at NHS Lothian sites.
Janice Alexander, site director at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, said:“We are grateful to Edinburgh and Lothians Health Foundation for providing funding for secure bike storage at the Royal Infirmary.
“As more staff began to travel to work by bike following the outbreak of Covid-19, bike thefts also began to rise.
“We immediately started to explore what we could do to support staff and look at measures to deter as well as prevent future thefts.
“Whilst we worked to secure funding for lockable bike cages, we liaised with Police Scotland to progress bike marking events on site. The feedback for these events was hugely positive and we plan on continuing this initiative in the longer term.
“It is great to see the lockable bike cages now installed on site as the second part of our prevention measures. I hope this helps to alleviate any concerns that staff had previously about bringing their bike to work.”
Jane Ferguson, Director of Edinburgh and Lothians Health Foundation, said: “The Foundation was delighted to support the request for funding to improve the bike storage facilities at the Royal Infirmary, giving staff some peace of mind that their bikes would be safe while they’re there. Cycling to work is a key element of our Greenspace and Health Strategy. Not only does it reduce pollution caused by traffic fumes, it also has a huge positive impact on mental and physical wellbeing.
“Now that the bike storage facilities are in place at the Royal Infirmary, we will continue to work on our wider active travel plans to support the improvement of health and wellbeing of people across Edinburgh and the Lothians, including providing further funding for additional bike storage facilities across NHS Lothian sites, and taking forward the Spaces for People project with Sustrans.”
If you would like to know more about how to keep your bike secure when you are out and about, at home in a common stair, or in a shed or garage, visit the ‘Secure your Bicycle’ page on Police Scotland website.
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