The Local Cycling Campaign and Local Agenda 21 gained funding and a site from Waltham Forest Council for old bikes to be reconditioned and resold. The council gave 1,500 from their Green Charter and the bikes are resold for 20 with revenue put back into the scheme.
Eric Drew, a Local Agenda 21 development officer, said: “It’s a brilliant little scheme. It will give benefit to the local area, training for young people, cheap bikes for local residents and a diversion for old bikes away from the waste stream.”
So far, the scheme has received 60 bikes. The workshop is held twice a month and has finished reconditioning eight of these with ten bikes on the waiting list. One of the workshops is run by the Local Cycling Campaign. The other is held by a cycle trainer, who is teaching school children and adults to ride bikes. Locals taking part in the scheme can order one of the reconditioned bikes.
Ms Drew said that even though they cannot predict the scheme’s success, she hoped that the recent advertising and local publicity will encourage people to use the scheme.
None of the bikes collected go to landfill. Those that are unsuitable for restoration are broken down for spare parts. The remaining pieces are being used in an art competition for school children with a recycling theme.
Waltham Forest also hosts several other community based re-use schemes such as Community Re:Paint by SWAP, Foiled Again for aluminium foil collection and Renov8 which reclaims old furniture. The bikes go to the Kings Road Recycling Centre, which also accepts a variety of objects and materials including aggregates, engine oil, garden and hand tools, glass, paper metal and car batteries.
Waltham Forest currently has a recycling rate of around 9%, with statutory targets at 12% by 2003-04 and 18% by 2005-06.
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