• More than 450,000 rides have taken on Spin e-scooters across Essex since launching in December 2020
• Operations have been extended in Basildon, Braintree, Brentwood, Chelmsford and Colchester. The Clacton-on-Sea trial will conclude by end of October
• Accessibility schemes that offer free 30-minute rides for eligible NHS workers and subsidised rates for unemployed and low-income riders continue in areas we operate in

Thursday 14th October 2021 — Spin, the micromobility unit of Ford Motor Company and Essex County Council today announce the extension of its e-scooter hire schemes in Essex to March 2022, aligned with the updated Department for Transport (DfT) legislation. In agreement with the local authority districts, Spin will continue to offer short term hire to riders in Basildon, Chelmsford and Colchester and it will conclude the trial in Clacton-on-Sea by the end of this month. Spin’s long-term e-scooter rental scheme in Brentwood and Braintree will also carry on.

Spin first launched its public hire e-scooter scheme in Essex in December 2020 and since then riders have taken more than 450,000 e-scooter rides. Chelmsford has seen the most rides (146,000), followed by Colchester (143,000), Basildon (124,000) and Clacton-on-Sea, which was launched in March 2021 (37,500).

The extension also includes the Spin Access and Spin Everyday Heroes schemes to support NHS workers and low-income riders with free and subsidised rides in Essex, to make essential journeys affordable. Since launch, Spin’s Everyday Heroes programme had 947 NHS workers signing up while nearly 100 riders are taking advantage of Spin Access.

In Clacton-on-Sea, the eight-month trial will conclude and operations will cease by the end of October. During this period nearly 6,000 riders opted for Spin’s greener transport option, clocking 37,500 journeys. Out of these riders, 40 work for the NHS, who were able to take advantage of Spin Everyday Heroes’ free rides and 20 riders on low income benefited from Spin Access’ subsidised rates.

Rider data reveals Spin e-scooters are most often used for short journeys, on average 3 km in distance and 23 minutes in length, with 82% of riders stating they have used a Spin e-scooter to replace a solo drive car journey at least once already. This is aiding Essex County Council (ECC) in its goal to lower carbon emissions across the region as part of its Safer, Greener, Healthier campaign. 

As part of Spin’s commitment to safe riding, it helped convene the Essex E-scooter Trial Stakeholder Group, which represents various disability interest groups across the county. They work in partnership with Spin to ensure that those with eyesight, hearing impairments or other disabilities can voice their concerns through a single organisation.

Peter Blackman, Chair, Essex E-scooter Trial Stakeholder Group said: “The extension of the trial is sensible and welcome as it will provide more time to implement and examine the efficacy of ongoing improvements arising from the constructive dialogue our Group is having with Spin and Essex County Council. Plus the Essex experiences are influencing the national framework. By the end of the extended trial we trust legislation will be forthcoming to provide a smooth transfer from trial to the permanent, but continually improving, safe use of legitimate e-scooters and eradication of the dangerous illegal private ones. In accordance with the recently revised Highway Code, users of all e-vehicles must assume all pedestrians they see may be visually impaired, deaf, frail or have a disability.”

Commenting on the trial extension, Steve Pyer, UK&I Country Manager at Spin said, “The success of our e-scooter trials in Essex represents an exciting shift to a more sustainable transport solution aligned with Essex County Council’s Safer Green Healthier campaign. Our community-centred, consultative approach with local authorities and collaboration with the Essex E-scooter Trial Stakeholder group demonstrates that micromobility solutions can provide a safe, sustainable, and reliable service that meet the needs of all residents.”

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Excitement levels are high for the return of Motorcycle Live in association with Bikesure Insurance, as they look forward to welcoming back visitors to the UK’s biggest bike show, taking place from Saturday 4 - Sunday 12 December at The NEC, Birmingham.

There are 60 motorcycle and scooter manufacturers showcasing their extensive product ranges and brand-new models for 2022, alongside two bustling retail zones, display features and nine exciting opportunities to ride a bike.

For those looking for the ultimate show adrenaline rush, there’s Experience Adventure!

Experience Adventure is a feature dedicated to giving a first taste of off-road riding, across varied terrain and obstacles, all under the watchful eye of specially trained instructors, and completely free of charge!

Supported by Honda, Royal Enfield and Triumph, visitors will experience first-hand the capabilities of adventure bikes in an area offering a safe environment to get comfortable with the riding technique and balance required for taking the bikes off road, as well as experiencing how these amazing, versatile bikes cope with challenging terrain away from asphalt.

With full protective riding gear from Bell Helmets and RST, specially designed for adventure riding, visitors will have great quality kit to ride in, allowing them to focus on the challenging, but rewarding side of adventure riding.

Sharing the track, and showcasing their riding skills three times a day, will be pro trials riders Jack Price, former World Trials 2 Champion, seven times British Champion and Michael Brown with European and multiple British Trials Champion titles to his name, who will give spectators a demonstration of their capabilities in an impressive Moto Trials performance on the challenging terrain, guaranteed to impress the crowds.

Motorcycle Live 2021 at The NEC, Birmingham opens its doors at 09:00am Saturday 4 December. Discounted advanced tickets are now on-sale and available from motorcyclelive.co.uk

This charming book, packed with unique artwork and engaging photographs, celebrates scooter mania. In a feast of nostalgia, it takes us through the evolution of the scooter, focusing naturally on all things Lambretta and Vespa, but also covering plenty of obscure and eccentric machinery along the way. Scooter enthusiasm in all its forms receives generous attention, whether as fashion accessory for fifties movie stars, style-conscious transport choice for the Mod generation, or object of worship for today’s retro-loving adherents. Quotes in the book such as “The scooters, clothes and music — an unforgettable time of my life” and “Exciting, fun and carefree days when anything seemed possible” sum up the enduring appeal of classic scooters. Anyone afflicted with the obsession will adore this book.  

Key content
• Scooters take off: rising from the rubble of post-war Italy, Piaggio emerged first with its Vespa (meaning ‘wasp’), soon followed by Innocenti and its Lambretta (named after a Milan suburb).
• Evolution: numerous Lambretta and Vespa models over the years are illustrated and explained, accompanied by a look at the myriad accessories available for them. 
• Not just in Italy: a survey of classic-era scooters from Britain (such as Brockhouse Corgi, Sun Wasp and Triumph Tigress), Germany (such as Glas Goggo, Zündapp Bella and Heinkel Tourist), Japan (such as Fuji Rabbit, Mitsubishi Silver Pigeon and Honda Juno) and elsewhere.
• Mod culture: emerging in the sixties and entwined with music and fashion, it made a unique contribution to scooter fandom that has since embraced the globe.
• Scooters as classics: the resurgence of interest since the late seventies and all that has come with it, from restoration and racing to customising and clubs.
• Scooter tales worldwide: Cesare Bataglini’s round-the-world Lambretta odyssey; Mod revivalists in Tokyo; elderly scooters soldiering on in Africa; Indonesia’s Rebel Riders and their crazy Vespa-derived creations; scaling Ben Nevis on a Lambretta; and much more.

Author
Like every boy in the 1950s, Barry John knew the names of John Cobb and Malcolm Campbell and possessed battered Dinky toys of their cars. His fascination with record-breaking has persisted to this day and led to his first book, Quest for Speed (Evro, 2020), which he wrote, illustrated and designed himself. Riding various scooters in the 1960s sparked another lifelong interest and now he has applied his professional skills — he studied at Harrow School of Art and worked as a graphic designer — to his love of scooter culture. He lives in Kent.

• Tommy Bridewell scores three second place finishes at Brands Hatch
• Tommy Bridewell finishes second in the BSB Championship
• Christian Iddon and Josh Brookes finish fourth and sixth in the BSB Championship respectively

Race 1
Tommy Bridewell and Christian Iddon both needed strong results to keep their title hopes alive going into race 1 of the final round at Brands Hatch.
VisionTrack Ducati’s Iddon took the early lead passing Mackenzie in Druids on the opening lap. By Lap 4 Bridewell was into third on his Oxford Products Racing Ducati behind Iddon and Mackenzie, only for the safety car to come out later that lap following a crash by Josh Owens (Rapid CDH Racing Kawasaki).
The safety car came in on Lap 7, but Iddon was not able to keep the same pace and Mackenzie took the lead a couple of laps later. Bridewell then got past Iddon on Lap 12 on the run up to Druids, with the riders briefly making contact. 
The Title Fighter trio went on to take the chequered flag in those same positions, with Mackenzie extending his championship lead.

Race 2
Oxford Products Racing Ducati Racing’s Tommy Bridewell ran another fantastic race at Brands Hatch in Race 2 taking a second-place finish behind Tarran Mackenzie.
Bridewell had put in a great move on the opening lap to overtake both Mackenzie and Christian Iddon along the Cooper Straight to take the lead into Surtees, starting his second lap with a 0.597s advantage.
But by half race distance the gap between Bridewell and Mackenzie was reduced to 0.171s with Mackenzie taking the lead back on Lap 12. Bridewell made another move on Lap 15 to retake the lead at Stirlings, setting up a thrilling final as he needed to beat Mackenzie if he was to keep any title hopes alive. But Mackenzie got great drive out the last corner on the last lap to take the chequered flag, and the 2021 crown, by 0.087s.

Iddon crossed the line in fourth, his own title hopes also coming to an end, with his VisionTrack Ducati teammate Josh Brookes taking sixth.

Race 3
Tommy Bridewell completed his final race of the season with another podium position, finishing second at Brands Hatch for the third time this weekend.
In a repeat of Race 2 Bridewell led for most of the race but was unable to provide an answer to newly-crowned Mackenzie on the McAMS Yamaha.
Bridewell’s final second place ensured that he also secured second in the championship, going one better than the third place he secured with his Ducati team back in 2019.
Iddon was on for another strong finish on the VisionTrack Ducati but a late incident with SYNETIQ BMW’s Danny Buchan saw them both crash out of the race.
Josh Brookes had a much better end to his season on his VisionTrack Ducati after getting his best result of the weekend finishing just off the podium in fourth.

Championship positions
1. Tarran MACKENZIE (Yamaha) 1202
2. Tommy BRIDEWELL (Ducati) 1166
3. Jason O'HALLORAN (Yamaha) 1162
4. Christian IDDON (Ducati) 1141
5. Peter HICKMAN (BMW) 1092
6. Josh BROOOKES (Ducati) 1079

Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Products Racing Ducati #46) – 2nd
“Brands Hatch, phenomenal weekend. To come away with second in the British Superbike championship is a credit to the Oxford Products Racing Ducati team. The team’s done a phenomenal job, the bike was working flawlessly all weekend. We’ve got a bit of work to do for 2022, already thinking about that, but to come away fighting for the race wins, every single race, and to come away second in the championship is a thumbs up from me. Thanks for all the support, I really appreciate it. We’ll see you back in 2022.”

Josh Brookes (VisionTrack Ducati #25) – 4th
“The weekend’s been a reflection of our year in that we’ve been aware of what the problems have been, but we’ve been unable to fully resolve them. We’ve made the best of it and seen progress in the last few rounds with some better results which was how this weekend went. It’s been a constant battle between front and rear end grip and when one’s better, the other’s worse. But we’ve got to the end of the season and I can guarantee everyone, I’ll be back. This year hasn’t been a reflection of myself in terms of my motivation or my desire to win and that’s as strong as I’ve ever so I’m looking forward to the time off and coming back even stronger in 2022.”

Josh Day wraps up his winning Ducati Cup season in style, sharing a win with Chris Walker at Brands Hatch
Chris Walker (4T2 Racing) claimed his second win of the season at Brands at the final British Superbike Round of the season on Saturday.