Can E-Bikes Help Power The Fortunes Of Suburban Offices?
The inexorable march of urbanisation has not been kind to suburban offices and business parks, which now consistently languish at the bottom of investors’ wish lists.
The owners of one office scheme in South East England have put in place a solution that combines technology and transport: e-bikes.
Europa Capital and Ediston Real Estate have installed electric bicycle technology at their refurbished 115K SF Cathedral Square office campus in Guildford. The technology is the first of its kind to be introduced in the U.K. by a landlord.
The Bewegen electric bikes have a geofencing feature, which means they can be used only by tenants of the building within a designated area and can be made secure without the need for a padlock or a docking station.
“The concept is set to reconnect the U.K.’s business parks to major transport infrastructure, town centres and local amenities,” the owners said.
With new developments facing increasing car parking restrictions and millennial office workers reliant on local transport, these geofencing electric bicycles could provide an environmentally friendly solution for landlords and local authorities.
