A city-wide bike hire scheme is being launched in Newcastle following the success seen in London.

From Friday branded bicycles will be available for short hire at 15 racks across the city with a further seven racks planned for the city’s suburbs.

It has grown from the ScratchBikes scheme, set up for Newcastle University students and lecturers last year.

Users will be able to book the bicycles using their mobile phones once they have signed up to the scheme online.

The new scheme will be run in partnership between ScratchBikes and business development group NE1.

Currently about 300 people use ScratchBikes, which was founded by graduates Jack Payne and Rob Grisdale, but it is hoped that thousands will join up to hire one of a fleet of 150 bicycles.

Users can rent the bicycle for two hours before returning it to one of the racks or re-booking it.

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, launched a similar scheme in the capital in July 2010.

Will your city join the cycling revolution too?

Schemes can be successful if there is more investment in city’s cycling infrastructure.  Traffic levels are an obvious deterrent to cycling in cities, but cycle lanes and heightened awareness and care of other road users can change this.

In London, the opening of two superhighway cycle routes (Wandsworth in south London to Westminster and Bow in east London to Aldgate) will take the total number of blue-painted priority lanes for cyclists in London to four, with eight others due to open by 2015.

Transport for London, which runs the lanes, hoped the routes would increase bike journeys by 120,000 per day.

On some sections of the route cycling has increased by more than 100%, and over three quarters of cyclists on the routes use them for travelling to and from work.”

MLP compensation lawyers support a cycle safe, cycle seen scheme to help encourage cycling in our cities.  If you have been injured through collision with a motor vehicle, another cyclist, a defective road surface, a spillage on the road or a fault with your cycle our injury compensation lawyers can help you. For more information on cycle accident compensation claims contact our compensation lawyers on 0161 926 9969 or email info@mlpsolicitors.co.uk