Big Street Bikers and Mercury open NZ's first solar e.bike Rechargery

MEDIA RELEASE THE UN-PETROL STATION OF THE FUTURE NEW ZEALAND’S FIRST SOLAR E-BIKE RECHARGERY OPENS Electric bikers of Auckland now have a sweet new hangout downtown where they, and their bikes, can recharge with some wonderfully clean energy.

Big Street Bikers have teamed up with Mercury to create New Zealand’s first ever public solar-powered electric bike recharging station, and it’s set to become the unpetrol station of the future.

Positioned next to Auckland’s Viaduct Harbour, at the bottom of the Nelson Street bike path, the Rechargery is launching this Thursday. The Rechargery’s initial pilot will use an array of solar panels, supported with batteries for storage, to provide most of the energy the e-bikes need to get around.

Aucklanders and visitors to the city are invited to come down to test ride an e-bike around the harbour, or even hire one for a full day adventure. Big Street Bikers have ride-to-own subscription plans on offer to make e-bikes more affordable and accessible for commuters and students alike – with discounts available for Mercury customers. Visitors to the Rechargery can also bring their own bike down to charge for free while hanging out, grabbing some food or going to work.

“We’re chuffed to have the support of Mercury to get the concept off the ground.

They have done a great job raising the profile of electric bikes so it was a natural alignment for us,” says Matt Weavers, Big Street Bikers Co-Founder “It’s a first for New Zealand and a sustainable step in the right direction to help solve the traffic problem in our city,” says Matt.

As a pilot scheme, the Rechargery will run at least to the end of summer where it may become a permanent fixture of Auckland city and the first stage of a point to point e-bike share system which runs on sunshine.

“We’re very excited to be working with Big Street Bikers to bring the Rechargery pilot concept to life. We’re huge fans of electric transport in general and the Rechargery is a wonderful opportunity for us to help inspire more Kiwis to experience the joy of riding e-bikes,” says Julia Jack, Mercury Chief Marketing Officer.

“The fact that we’re helping to power the Rechargery with Mercury Solar is a great bonus and the perfect example of energy made wonderful,” says Julia.

Big Street Biker’s Rechargery will be launching with a ‘Biker Breakfast’ for all commuter cyclists on Thursday 15 February starting from 7.30am.

Ends

For further information or interviews please contact:

Hustle and Bustle Hannah Powrie Hannah@hustleandbustle.co.nz 021 480 215 #rechargery #RideWonderful www.bigstreetbikers.co.nz https://www.instagram.com/bigstreetbikers/ https://www.facebook.com/bigstreetbikers https://www.mercury.co.nz/ https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/ridewonderful/

AUCKLAND CYCLING CHEAT SHEET - Cycling is growing in popularity and participation, with over 1,000 new cyclists joining the movement every month.

- 166,919 cycle trips were recorded in December 2017, an increase of 14.5% over December 2016.

- 177,574 cycle trips were recorded in November 2017, an increase of 19.4% over November 2016. Source:https://at.govt.nz/cycling-walking/cycling-walkingmonitoring/monthly-cycle-monitoring/ - Forty-five thousand people started riding in 2016. That’s enough people to fill up Mt Smart Stadium.

- There’s been a 62% increase in cycle trips in the city centre since 2013.

- Bikes now make up 9.4% of inbound traffic via Upper Queen Street.

- The Northwestern cycleway has experienced a 27% increase in bike traffic since 2015. Grafton Gully has seen a 34% increase and the Mt Roskill Shared Path has gone up 16 %. Source:https://www.greaterauckland.org.nz/2017/06/21/cyclingnumbers-auckland/ - Over 230,000 Auckland commuters travel less than 5km to work every day in Auckland. This is a short 10 minute ride on an e-bike. Source : https://at.govt.nz/ media/1974167/auckland-cycling-10-year-plan-july-2017.pdf - On average Auckland traffic moves at only 25km/h. The average electric bike has a top speed of around 30km/h. Source: https://www.stuff.co.nz/motoring/77938154/ which-of-new-zealands-major-cities-has-the-worst-traffic-congestion - Up to 15 electric bikes can be parked into the same space as a single car.

ABOUT BIG STREET BIKERS Big Street Bikers are on a mission to get 10,000 electric bikers on the streets of Auckland by 2020. They have a unique ‘bikes as a service’ subscription model for consumers and businesses to make this great new technology more accessible and affordable for everyone.

Matt Weavers is co-founder of Big Street Bikers and a kiwi entrepreneur. He has an extensive advertising background working with major international brands and is Chief Marketing Officer for one of New Zealand’s largest online retailers - Trade Tested.

When he’s not out riding his bike you can catch him playing disco records on 95bFM every Friday night.

ABOUT MERCURY Mercury is one of New Zealand’s leading electricity retailers, and proudly generates all of its electricity from renewable sources. Mercury’s purpose is to inspire New Zealanders to enjoy energy in more wonderful ways.

Mercury is a passionate advocate for electric transport because of the wonderful advantages renewable electricity has for New Zealand. With its award winning Ride Wonderful e.bike campaign it has encouraged over 4000 riders to experience the joy of riding an ebike at Ride Day events. Mercury customers are also offered the chance to purchase discounted e.bikes as a customer benefit.