Trials of bicycle hire and storage schemes are set to launch in Faversham this spring.

The town council has secured funding for the two projects to encourage people to avoid using their vehicles.

Bikes will be available to hire 24/7 from a cycle rack for up to a day via an app.

It is hoped the year-long pilot will be up and running by the end of April.

In a separate initiative, cyclists will be able to hire storage space in hangars in the town centre.

It is hoped the scheme will help people who live or work in the town, but currently have no space to securely store a bike in their building.

Town clerk Louise Bareham applied to Swale Borough Council’s Eastern Area Committee for the funding, with a grant of £7,800 for the hire scheme and £7,500 for the hangar storage.

“We are looking at using a company and having an app which will be available 24/7 to hire,” she said.

“It is not going to be like Boris bikes because you will have to return them from where you got them from - so it’s not A to B, it’s A to A.

“We are looking at various locations in Faversham but also village locations to encourage people to cycle into town and out.”

There will be a mixture of electric and pedal bikes available - which will be hired on an app where riders have to enter their bank details and scan a QR code to release the bike from a rack.

The company managing it is yet to be officially confirmed, but Ms Bareham says it is one that operates similar schemes elsewhere.

It is hoped daily hire costs would be about £18 for a push bike and £35 for an e-bike, so £3 or £7 per hour respectively - but these prices could change as they are yet to be formally agreed.

There will be six bikes available at each of the two racks to begin with as part of the pilot.

The town council will be running surveys during the trial, for people to suggest other locations and if more bikes are needed.

They will also be looking at having them at some of the new developments in the area.

There will be no restrictions on the distance people can travel but riders will be encouraged to stay local.

“You can go as far as you like,” Ms Bareham added. “Obviously an electric bike has a battery life.

“We will be providing ideas for routes, like if people are visitors and they want to hire a bike.”

Meanwhile, a separate trial is being launched for new cycle storage units.

Designed and manufactured by Cyclehoop, the town council says the bike hangars offer a secure solution to long-term parking and protection from tough weather conditions, vandalism and theft.

Ms Bareham continued: “You have them on roads and it is minimal rent. They can store bikes there and it is another way of encouraging people to use their bikes.

“The trial will be in two car parks and it will be about encouraging people who live outside Faversham to cycle in.”

The hangar stores six bikes within a space the size of half a car parking bay, but the cycles will still need to be secured with a D lock.

Cyclists request to rent one of the spaces and are given a key which unlocks the storage unit.

Funding has been secured for two hangars in the Central and Institute Road car parks - and locations have reportedly been found which do not impact Swale Borough Council’s parking revenue.

The town council will manage the trial and oversee the hiring of space.

If there is demand for one in a particular area, the bike hangar can be relocated and its use monitored.

Cllr Eddie Thomas (Lib) said if the projects are successful, the borough council will be “keen to put in more funding to expand it”.

He said of the hangar scheme: “People may decide they want one near their houses.

“There are Victorian areas of Faversham where having a bike isn’t very practical where you have to store it in your hallway.”