C2W Alliance call on government to raise limit to £2500
Posted on in Cycles News , Political News
In the House of Commons yesterday the Cycle to Work Alliance called on the government to make e-bikes more affordable by raising the cycle to work scheme limit.
The Alliance - formed of four providers of the scheme - is calling for the existing £1,000 scheme limit for bikes and equipment to be lifted to £2,500 for electric bikes. Steve Edgell, Director of Cycle Solutions and Chair of the Cycle to Work Alliance initiated the discussion at the All Party Parliamentary Cycling Group panel discussion on maximising the benefits of e-bikes in the House of Commons yesterday.
Speaking before the event Steve Edgell said "A good quality electric bike suitable for commuting regularly remains at a relatively high price point, above the £1,000 scheme limit. We're keen to continue working with the Department for Transport and the Treasury to make the case that the scheme is the most effective mechanism to encourage electric bikes."
Ruth Cadbury MP, Co-Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Cycling Group, said:
"Electric bikes are a great opportunity to get more people cycling, and particularly those who wouldn't otherwise cycle.
The government needs to consider ways it can help people access electric bikes, and the Cycle to Work Scheme could be one method of achieving this."
Alternative incentives
Whilst increasing the limit under the cycle to work scheme would make e-bikes more affordable for employees, the point was raised that this overlooks the fact that one of the main target audiences for e-bikes - retired people - would not benefit.
It was suggested that the government should focus on getting e-bikes included in the OLEV scheme, which currently offers a government grant for the purchase of low emission vehicles including electric cars, vans, and motorbikes.
E-bikes are currently not included because of the way OLEV views them, as not being a suitable alternative to other combustible engine vehicles -despite the rest of Europe taking a different stance. France currently offers a grant of €200 towards the purchase of an e-bike while Norway's capital has introduced grants of up to $1,200 towards electric cargo bikes. Most recently the Swedish Government has presented a budget for 2018 which includes a 25% subsidy for electric bike sales.
Andrew Selous MP, Co-Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Cycling Group, said:
"There is a clear opportunity for electric bikes to increase participation in cycling, and it is important that government and industry work together to ensure people can access good quality electric bikes.
"There are a number of ways this can be achieved, either through community loan schemes or through the Cycle to Work Scheme, that should be given further thought".
Finance options
Affordability is one of the key barriers to e-bike growth here in the UK. In fact, according to a recent BikeBiz poll, 56% of retailers said that 'pricing of the product' is the biggest challenge when selling e-bikes. The cycle to work limit of £1000 currently puts most e-bikes out of a customer's price range, but the popularity of retail finance options in hundreds of IBDs across the UK means customers still have the ability to finance their purchase up to £15,000.
Have your say
Retailers have already called for the ACT to raise concerns for the implications raising the C2W threshold would have on the IBD network with big dealers being able to secure agreements with the largest employers, driving even more customers away from the IBDs.
