Cycling

The main campus is the hub of network of safe routes for cyclists that stretch many kilometers, often completely free of traffic.

This map indicates where they are. Local knowledge is key; here is the best information on the routes out there:

1. A38 Blue Route: a two-way cycle lane that runs from campus's South Gate to the city centre. The lanes are completely segregated from Bristol Road traffic, and there are specially controlled lights to safely cross junctions. Great for commuters from Balsall Heath, the city centre and beyond.

2. Rea Valley Route: an off-road route through local parks that connects King's Norton, Stirchley, Northfield, Longbridge and beyond to Cannon Hill park.

The university provides secure cycle parking across the campus and residences.  A map of cycling facilities including showers can be accessed here thanks to our very own Bike User Group (BUG).

There is an ongoing programme to increase and improve the range of cycle parking and shower facilities available on campus including installing covered shelters.

We have 26 bike lockers around campus available to hire at £4 per calendar month. If you are interested in hiring a locker please e-mail sustainabletravel@contacts.bham.ac.uk  who will advise re availability.

Secure cycle parking can be found outside the old Munrow Sports Centre site (now a car park to rear of Biosciences) or in a large compound to the rear of Muirhead Tower.  These facilities are for staff and students only so please email sustainabletravel@contacts.bham.ac.uk from your University email address to get access.  Members of the new sports centre can also access secure parking within the car park via swipe card access. 

The new Cycle-to-Work scheme opened in October 2020. In short it is money-saving extended hire scheme for members of staff. Budding and seasoned cycle commuters can choose a new bike and equipment worth up to £3000, and make large tax and NI savings via a salary sacrifice.

Colleagues can order online or via a network of local independent shops. If your local shop is not in the network, get in touch to have it added. In due course, Gear Up, the soon-to-open campus bike shop, will be part of the scheme.

Find out how the scheme works, eligibility criteria, and how to order on the HR intranet. All ordering, whether from your local bike shop or direct from Cycle Solutions, the scheme provider, is done via the university’s dedicated landing page.

Ceri Griffin, our Cycle Solutions account manager, will be holding introductory webinars on:

Monday 9th November @ 1.00pm

Tuesday 17th November @ 3.30pm

Wednesday 25th November @ 9.30am

To register, simply contact Ceri at cerig@cyclesolutions.co.uk and he will forward you the link on the day. Ceri knows the scheme inside out, so attendance is well worth it.

If you would like to try cycling before committing to the scheme, see below for details of our staff bike loan scheme.

Social enterprise Gear Up is soon to open a bike repair shop on campus, picking up the baton from Urban Cycles.

We look forward to welcoming the Gear Up team soon and to having their valuable service available to cyclists at the university.

Cycling is a great way to get around when studying at the University of Birmingham.  If you do not have your own bike you can hire one from us for £70 for the academic year, or £50 for a term.  We provide good quality, reliable hybrid bikes which are perfect for getting around town and making use of the nearby canal.

If you are interested in hiring a bike please contact the sustainable travel officer.

We have 7 hybrid Raleigh bikes  to act as loan bikes for staff on campus.  These bikes will be available for staff to borrow on short to medium term loans for FREE.

If you have thought about trying cycling to work but don't want to splash out on a bike then why not loan one of ours to give it a try?  

Live too far away to cycle but would like to go out on your lunch along the canal?

If the answer to either of these questions is yes or you just want more info please contact the sustainable travel officer for more information.

The University has an active Bicycle Users Group called BUBUG (Birmingham University Bicycle Users Group).

BUBUG was formed in 1996 and since then they have been involved in lots of activities, worked constructively to promote cycling and provide a wide range of extremely helpful and supportive information on cycling.

The University takes crime prevention seriously on campus and we have our own dedicated police offer on campus.  Crime is generally low on campus however securing your bicycle is your responsibilty.  We recommend you use a strong D-Lock to secure your bicycle at all times and avoid using a cable lock. Cable locks can be cut through easily by bike thieves and the vast majority of bike theft on campus is due to poor quality locks.

For a quick guide on how to lock your bike properly we recommend watching this video.

Purchasing D Locks

To help keep your bike safe the university offers two options for buying discounted D Locks:  you can either buy from the Security Reception to the rear of Aston Webb building for £17 or get 1/3 off a Kryptonite lock from Urban Cycles who are located outside Staff House.

 Students can now get their bikes security marked and a FREE D Lock via Security.  Regular events on campus listed on their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/uobubsafe/

Staff at the University of Birmingham are eligible to claim cycle mileage when they use their own bike for work business at a rate of 20p per mile.  More information at the Finance intranet pages.

Each year a large volume of bikes are left abandoned on campus.  These bikes take up valuable parking spaces and make campus look untidy.  Bikes that are identified as potentially abandoned will be tagged and left for a defined period of time before being removed by a local charity called Birmingham Bike Project.  Bikes that are still in good enough condition will then be sold at second hand bike sales for staff and students.

If you spot a bike that you believe to be abandoned please email sustainabletravel@contacts.bham.ac.uk with a description of the bike, its location and preferably a picture.

The University recognises that one of the barriers to people cycling is a lack of confidence or understanding of how to do so safely on the roads.  Cycle training is offered on an ad-hoc basis over the winter months.

Please email sustainabletravel@contacts.bham.ac.uk to find out more. 

The video on this British Cycling page contains some really useful tips on road positioning for commuter cyclists.

Thanks to grant funding from the Birmingham Cycle Revolution project the University now has 2 folding Brompton bikes.  These bikes fold down to the size of regular luggage so can be taken on buses and trains or put in the boot of the car enabling multi modal journeys.  If you're travelling to another city but the meeting is a couple of miles from the station a folding bike is a great alternative to a taxi or a bus.  Not only will it likely be quicker in an urban environment but will also save the university money and reduce our carbon footprint.  The bike even comes with a bespoke bag to carry your work or laptop in!

If you would like to book a Brompton please contact  sustainabletravel@contacts.bham.ac.uk