Santander and Transport for London (TfL) have confirmed the extension of their long running partnership supporting London’s cycle hire scheme through to at least 2032. The renewed deal builds on the existing collaboration which began in 2015 and has since seen millions of journeys taken on the familiar red bicycles across the capital.
The announcement was made earlier this month at the Southbank where Banco Santander’s Executive Chair Ana Botín and Santander UK CEO Mike Regnier joined the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan TfL’s Customer Director Emma Strain and London’s Walking and Cycling Commissioner Will Norman to mark the occasion.
As part of the agreement Santander will continue to fund the scheme and support further investment into its development. This includes ongoing fleet upgrades new docking stations and improvements to infrastructure and the official Santander Cycles app making the service more accessible and efficient for users.
Image © TfL
The scheme which now includes more than 2000 electric bikes alongside a fleet of 10000 traditional cycles has recorded over 16 million hires in 2023 so far which is a three percent increase on the same period last year. Since electric bikes were introduced in 2022 usage has continued to rise particularly in central and inner London.
Future plans for the scheme include expansion into new areas such as Hackney and Camden with additional docking stations to be installed in boroughs that are currently underserved. The Mayor of London highlighted the environmental and health benefits of cycling and reiterated that the scheme remains central to the capital’s sustainable transport goals.
The partnership renewal underlines Santander’s commitment to active travel in the UK with the bank contributing more than £2.6 million to the local economy through its involvement last year alone. Both TfL and Santander have framed the announcement as a long term investment in greener more accessible mobility for all Londoners.
