1,400 new e-bikes to be added to London’s Santander fleet

The 600-strong fleet of Santander e-bikes available in London is to be increased to 2,000 and a new £3 day pass introduced to encourage more people to cycle around the city.

Power-assisted e-bikes were introduced to the Santander cycle fleet in 2022, since when more than 750,000 e-bike hires have taken place, with double the number of hires per bike per day compared to the non-electric bikes.

Santander have found that their users would prefer a different tariff structure and so are introducing a new £3 day pass which will allow unlimited hires (of the traditional cycles) of less than 30 minutes from Sunday 3rd March. As the current rate is £1.65 per hire, the pass will enable savings even if just two journeys are made.

For an extra £1 per hire day pass holders can upgrade to one of the e-bikes which are £3.30 per 30-minutes for non-members and customers without a Day Pass, or a fare of £1 per 60 minutes for monthly and annual members. 

Membership costs £20 per month or £120 a year, which allows customers unlimited 60-minute rides on non-powered cycles with an additional charge of £1 for e-bikes.

David Eddington, TfL’s Head of Cycle Hire, said: ’Santander Cycles is a vital part of London’s transport system and we are constantly looking for ways to improve the scheme, as well as making it as accessible as we can.  Santander Cycle e-bike usage in the capital is now more popular than ever so these additional e-bikes will allow more people to be able to access them. We’ve also listened to our customers regarding our fare tariff and are introducing a Day Pass to give people making multiple journeys in a day certainty about the overall cost of using the scheme.

‘Santander Cycles has played an important role in encouraging more people to cycle and we look forward to seeing more Londoners making use of both the scheme’s e-bikes and mechanical bikes to ensure a greener and healthier future for everyone in London.’