Posties on Pashleys

If you, like me, keep your eyes peeled for cycling related stuff going on around you, you'll have noticed some new additions to the streets of suburban Manchester in recent months.
TNT, the Dutch based courier service, has rolled out a fleet - not sure how many you actually need to constitute a fleet but they have more than two so a fleet it is - of postal delivery bikes as they continue to undercut Royal Mail.
This is the first time - to my knowledge - that a company other than Royal Mail has delivered to the door in the UK - the 'final mile' as it's known.
You may recall that Royal Mail dropped its own bike fleet a few years ago which was very bad news for Brompton which was its exclusive supplier. I seem to recall than heath & safety was spuriously trotted out as the reason to ditch the bikes in favour of those idiotic red chariot things the posties push around these days.
Anyhoo, the TNT bikes are orange - as you would expect - Pashley Pronto cargo bikes and very nice they are too.

Is that a 7 or a 9?

If there is a more suitable vehicle for the delivery of those 'sorry it wouldn't fit through your letterbox' notices than the bicycle, then I'll eat one of the 300 punctured tubes I have knocking around.
Good to see.

Brompton respond...

My new favourite people in the world are the lovely folk at Brompton's marketing department who have taken the time to send me the following update on how the Manchester Brompton Dock is doing.
From a standing start in March I reckon this is pretty good going - I clearly need to keep my peepers open to spot the bikes around town.  So, there's my challenge.

We are pleased to be able to tell you that the dock is doing very well. We currently have exactly 100 members signed up and a steady 50% utilisation rate. 

Virgin Trains have been incredibly helpful in getting this dock going and despite them loosing the franchise this morning (effective early December) we would like to reassure our members that this will not affect the docks at Manchester or anywhere else.  

You and others can follow us on Twitter (@bromptondock) or like us on Facebook to stay up to date. 

We are busy preparing to install docks right across the country, everyone has seen the one at Manchester and wants one for themselves!

How is Manchester's Brompton Dock doing?

Back in March Brompton, in partnership with Virgin Trains, launched its Brompton Dock hire scheme at Piccadilly Station - a dead easy and convenient way to hire a lovely Brompton for the day.  Six months on, it'd be interesting to know how it's been going.
The first half of 2012 in the north west has provided a superb test bed for widening the participation in cycling with two huge forces pulling in opposite directions.
In one corner, is the hugely enhanced profile cycling is currently enjoying thanks to Team Sky's successes and to Team GB's Olympic successes.  With Manchester being home to both organisations, you would hope that the Brompton Dock would receive wholehearted backing of commuters.
Pushing in the opposite direction has been the wettest April, May, June and July on record [this mightn't actually be the case but it's felt like it].
While the set up of the scheme can't really be faulted and the lockers are well positioned, unobtrusive and have a certain industrial chic, I have to confess that I don't see many people whizzing round the city.  But that's just my impression so I've written to Brompton to ask them how it's going.
Hopefully they will give me a line to say it's going 'very well' or 'initial take up has been encouraging'. I really hope they tell me it's oversubscribed and they are installing more but we'll see.

Ride safe