The Isle of Wight Council has officially launch PedalAid, a new cycling initiative to encourage more people to choose to cycle to work.
Following secured funding from the Department for Transport (DfT) Access Fund for Sustainable Travel, PedalAid is a free to download app that tracks your cycling on the Red Squirrel Trail – 32 miles through stunning countryside including Cowes, Newport, Sandown, Shanklin and Wroxall.
The initial aim of the app is to encourage more commuters to get out of their cars and onto their bikes from Cowes to Newport. Each month, commuters are jointly encouraged to reach a set target of 2000 km (during the winter months this is rolled over 2 months). At the end of each challenge, a donation from the corporate sponsor is made to a local charity.
The creator of the app is Llama Digital, a UK based web and mobile app company. Alongside the app, a brand new website pedalaid.org has been created, providing further detail about the route and what signing up to PedalAid means for you and local charities.
Other new app functionality includes a new user info page and photos of the start and finish of the trail.
The Isle of Wight Council have been working closely with Solent, a local marketing and communications agency based in Newport, to create a new brand identity for the initiative and increase the profile of the route. Therefore getting more people to use the track and in turn download the app and hopefully meet the 2000km target gaining more donations for local charities.
Councillor Ian Ward, Cabinet Member for Infrastructure and Transport commented:
“It is great to be working with local businesses to raise the profile of this app. The Island is blessed with some excellent cycling routes and we should be encouraging more people to use them. Using PedalAid to raise money for charity, whilst getting fit, is a brilliant incentive.”
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Charities will vary each month and will be chosen according to whom the monthly sponsors wishes to support.
