clm-2c4859d5732f31b6
quantitative
launched as Bee Network Cycle Hire and renamed Starling Bank Bikes in February 2024
Permanent project revision
Revision 2026-10-16-baseline · effective 2026-10-16
Current revision. This is the snapshot used by the live entity page.
Created the first structured Evidence Passport with 26 claims and 13 source dossiers.
sha256:de9815c4f878d58aee31df74811577e43b604727ea30b23ef5236051466d151e
add /evidencePassport — Added claim-level evidence mapping and source dossiers.add /revisionHistory — Established a permanent, hash-addressed baseline revision.The text below is copied verbatim from the published record. Each claim names the source dossiers that carry it; caveats stay attached to the claim they qualify.
clm-2c4859d5732f31b6
quantitative
launched as Bee Network Cycle Hire and renamed Starling Bank Bikes in February 2024
clm-0f03b44a12a24dd2
descriptive
is run for Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) by the operator Beryl under a contract to design, build, operate and maintain the scheme
clm-5647fa401ba5b4f5
quantitative
It opened to the public on 18 November 2021 along Oxford Road, at MediaCityUK and at the University of Salford
clm-9589cfd6e585de21
quantitative
by Easter 2023 had grown to over 1,000 bikes, more than 200 stations and over 2,500 stands in parts of Manchester, Salford and Trafford
clm-97c27331ab3464e3
descriptive
Each bike carries a smart unit with GPS tracking and telemetry
clm-08e9370a73109805
descriptive
riders unlock and pay through an app that shows real-time availability
clm-7225ffce8d4a032c
quantitative
Beryl publishes a live GBFS feed of the scheme under the CDLA-Permissive-2.0 licence
clm-414e9ce67e409555
quantitative
It followed the dockless Mobike scheme, which arrived in Manchester and Salford in June 2017
clm-6e506a64874c6196
quantitative
withdrew in September 2018, citing theft and vandalism
clm-df6ee03e919937c6
quantitative
From spring 2023 theft and vandalism outpaced repairs
clm-f74aef52f397aa10
quantitative
at the end of July 2023 over 550 bikes were missing, over 700 needed repair and availability dropped below 200
clm-4bd83e09ad5b675d
quantitative
against a contracted service level of 95% of commissioned bikes
clm-25d20d47fb6d38aa
quantitative
TfGM and Beryl suspended service at 102 stations, chosen as those generating less than 1 ride per station per day, which coincided with areas of higher anti-social behaviour
clm-d868277c33011de9
descriptive
they also made both locks mandatory, raised the fines for misuse and brought the scheme into police and transport-unit enforcement
clm-90f738027e85ae85
quantitative
TfGM counts 504,807 rides from January to October 2025, about 29% more than in the same months of 2024
clm-da8e379d6f78560b
quantitative
1.57 million rides since launch by 19 October 2025
clm-833e817a546bbf8a
quantitative
with half the fleet electric since May 2025
clm-740533a05c8e0b02
quantitative
the number of bikes available each month from April to November 2025 ranged from 665 to 859, against a target of 1,200
clm-7b0bf3683a5c7d4d
quantitative
In TfGM's survey, 81% of respondents in 2025 had used a hired bike to commute, up from 57% in 2024
clm-9157fb73152d0e7d
descriptive
the annual report says some riders switched from motorised journeys but gives no figure
clm-0659c670313669a5
quantitative
Mobike, which lost 10 per cent of its Manchester fleet in July 2018 alone
clm-4a2c86df9c93c6a0
descriptive
as its UK general manager put it, "unlike some operators we do not use taxpayer money to help balance our books"
clm-93f14e5159197096
descriptive
Greater Manchester's cycling commissioner replied that a scheme needs "the option for docking stations and enough people on the ground"
clm-eaff3627973c217c
quantitative
The public scheme that followed has stands, two locks and GPS on every bike, and still fell below 200 available bikes in 2023
clm-b23cfb183f33df57
descriptive
a contract under which any operating deficit is funded from the Mayor's Challenge Fund
clm-363f575936f50511
descriptive
an authority that could shut its least-used stations and call in the police instead of leaving
This layer records what is known about each source, what is still missing, and the exact snapshot this page is rendering. A missing date, archive or hash stays visible as missing.
Awaiting operator and domain-expert review; publication of this revision implies neither.
sha256:de9815c4f878d58aee31df74811577e43b604727ea30b23ef5236051466d151e
src-b64d8338278d1e28Report of the Mayor of Greater Manchester to the GMCA Overview and Scrutiny Committee for its meeting of 27 September 2023, prepared by TfGM's Active Travel Programme Director. States that phase 1 launched in November 2021 and was rolled out in three sub-phases to Easter 2023, culminating in over 1,000 bikes, more than 200 stations and over 2,500 stands across parts of Manchester, Salford and Trafford (it also says over 1,500 bikes had been commissioned); that Beryl won the design, build, operate and maintain contract in 2021; that each bike has a smart unit with on-board GPS tracking and telemetry; that any operational cost deficit is funded from the Mayor's Challenge Fund; that at the end of July 2023 over 550 bikes were missing, over 700 needed repair and availability fell below 200, against a contracted level of 95% of commissioned bikes; and that the recovery plan suspended 102 stations generating less than 1 ride per station per day, mandated both locks, raised penalties and added police and TravelSafe enforcement.
src-eab16a1f7a33f4e5TfGM's annual report for 2025, Appendix A to the GMCA Overview and Scrutiny papers of 28 January 2026. Reports 504,807 Starling Bank Cycle Hire rides from January to October 2025, about 29% higher than January to October 2024 (the summary rounds this to 30%), 1.57 million rides and more than 3.86 million kilometres since launch by 19 October 2025, 50% of the fleet electric assist since May 2025, and survey results: 81% of respondents had used a hired bike to commute in 2025 against 57% in 2024, and 77% were satisfied against 63%. Says the survey indicates some riders switched from motorised transport, without a figure.
src-d372b4267dbaf1c3Data appendix to TfGM's 2025 annual report, published with the GMCA Overview and Scrutiny papers of 28 January 2026. Figure 23, sourced to the operator's operational data, charts the number of bikes available each month from April to November 2025 (859, 753, 665, 789, 757, 840, 762, 798) against a target line of 1,200.
src-6e314c0f3a1bae2aCovering report of the Active Travel Commissioner for the GMCA Overview and Scrutiny meeting of 28 January 2026. States that 'frustrating, but manageable, levels of Anti-Social Behaviour persist', that funding from the Mayor's Challenge Fund and Active Travel Funds 4 and 5 allows the scheme to continue through an extension of the contract, and that a plan to expand cycle hire to further areas was delayed, with proposals due by May 2026.
src-bdf87e67a5901477The operator's announcement that riders covered more than 10,000km in under four weeks; states that the scheme launched to the public on 18 November 2021, with bikes at stations along Oxford Road, at MediaCityUK and at the University of Salford.
src-25c106e7747b61c1TfGM's standing sponsorship page: Starling Bank became the first sponsor of the bike hire scheme, TfGM's largest commercial sponsorship; the scheme was renamed Starling Bank Bikes, with branding rolled out in February 2024, and sponsorship revenue goes back into the scheme.
src-4b5c4234e04a1feaThe scheme's privacy notice: TfGM works with Beryl to provide the scheme; data collected include bike location and GPS tracking, the route taken during a hire and start and drop-off locations; GPS tracking is used so 'that we can learn more about cycle routes and where our bikes are'.
src-f186ba424803fa17The live General Bikeshare Feed Specification (GBFS 2.2) feed for the system 'beryl_greater_manchester', named Starling Bank Bikes; its auto-discovery file lists station status, free bike status and geofencing zones, and the system information gives the licence as CDLA-Permissive-2.0.
src-23990a3ac4326b82Reports Mobike's announcement that it would launch in Manchester and Salford, its first cities outside Asia, on 29 June 2017 with 1,000 bikes, as a six-month trial agreed with the two city councils and TfGM.
src-611413697a0d2198Reports that a thousand Mobikes were to be made available in Manchester and Salford under permission for a six-month trial from Thursday 29 June 2017, and the mayor's description of the scheme as untested.
src-afd8e23292a37d40Reports Mobike's withdrawal from Manchester: over July 10 per cent of the Manchester fleet was lost or vandalised, many bikes had locks hacked off and frames resprayed; Mobike arrived in June 2017; first time the company retreated from a city because of behaviour rather than weak demand; quotes the general manager of Mobike UK, Jan Van der Ven, as told to the Guardian.
src-f10120d12354f26eReports Mobike's press release 'Goodbyes are never easy', citing 'increased bike losses due to theft and vandalism in the city' and promising refunds of deposits; quotes Jan Van der Ven: 'unlike some operators we do not use taxpayer money to help balance our books'. Dates the Manchester arrival to July 2017 and says Mobike withdrew its initial bikes in November 2017 before returning to a smaller zone.
src-c4c2b183a953ee66Reports Mobike's statement that it had lost 10% of its bikes each month over the summer, and the response of Greater Manchester's cycling and walking commissioner Chris Boardman that Mobike had not shown 'the right level of engagement' and that a successful scheme needs 'the option for docking stations and enough people on the ground'.