Background

While mobility hubs are common in many parts of continental Europe, in the UK they are a new but growing concept. CoMoUK started the pop-up mobility hubs project with the aim of demonstrating the potential of mobility hubs in a UK context.

In 2023/24, we secured funding from Smarter Choices, Smarter Places’ Active Nation fund, a grant of Transport Scotland, for phase one of the project. The aim of this fund was to support more people in Scotland to walk, wheel or cycle for short, local journeys.

The project drew inspiration from other initiatives, such as: Meristem’s permanent parklet mobility hub for the London Borough of Redbridge; Mobipunt vzw’s short-term pop-up mobility hubs (‘Hoppinpunts’) in Leuven, Belgium; and Transport for West Midland’s mobility hubs trial in 2021.

Summary

Phase one of the project ran between August 2023 and March 2024. One hub was based in Inverness and one in the Forth Valley, with two pop-ups per hub, spending around 4-8 weeks per site. Engaging with the community was crucial for the success of the hubs. Free activities for the pop-ups included led walks, bike repair sessions, smoothie bikes and bike sharing try-outs.

Project partners for phase one included HITRANS (operator of Inverness’ Hi-Bike rental scheme), FEL Scotland, Velocity Café and Bicycle Workshop and Partnerships for Wellbeing. Community groups and organisations that helped to host and promote the hubs included: Merkinch Primary School, Kidical Mass Inverness, Stoneywood Care, Ness Side Tesco superstore, BetterPoints, Holm Community Council, Incredible Edible Inverness, and Tamfourhill Community Hub.

Locations and activities

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Impact in numbers

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*Only applies to the two Inverness pop-ups as no Forth Valley bike sharing scheme

For more information about the project, including pictures and details about current and future plans for the hubs, please visit our pop-up mobility hub page.