Doing business in Cork is about to get a little greener.

Cork City Council has announced that city businesses and community groups will be offered the opportunity to avail of a fleet of cargo bikes, thanks to funding from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform’s Public Service Innovation Fund.

The cargo bike library project, one of 20 ideas to secure funding in this round, is aimed at encouraging active travel and increasing the use of cargo bikes in the private and public sector.

The cargo bikes will be loaned for six months on a trial basis to see if they could be used as an alternative to less sustainable means of transport.

Cork City Council expects that the cargo bike library will be in place by the end of this year following the procurement of the fleet.

“Across Europe, it is estimated that 50% of all motorised trips that involve the transport of goods in cities could be shifted to cargo bikes and bicycles,” said Frank Fitzgerald, Sustainable Travel Awareness Officer in Cork City Council’s Sports and Sustainability section.

“The diversity of cargo bikes is astonishing. Cargo bikes take many different shapes and forms. Besides the cyclist, they can carry goods and people of up to 250kg and can even be coupled with a trailer for extra capacity”.