从自行车复苏到电动交通梦：英国绿色经济在疫情下蓬勃发展

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From Dusted-off Bikes to Electric Dreams：UK Green Economy Booms on Back of Covid-19 从自行车复苏到电动交通梦：英国绿色经济在疫情下蓬勃发展

Jillian Ambrose 吉莉恩·安布罗斯

The queues were “absolutely crazy”， says Gavin Hudson， the owner of the cycle repair startup Butternut Bikes. As lockdown descended he began fixing old bikes in the parking lot of a Methodist church in north London， before moving his services to a furloughed pub in Crouch End. However， the surge in demand for cycle repairs meant the pop-up was soon able to afford a permanent address.

“Some people come in and tell us they haven’t been on a bike in 10 years，” Hudson says. “They are dragging all kinds of bikes， covered in cobwebs， out from the shed to get back on the roads. It’s great. I think it’s really true that there are few problems in society today that can’t be made better by getting people walking and cycling more.”

Butternut Bikes is one of countless British businesses poised to profit from a green economic boom in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. While the government faces growing pressure to unveil a post-pandemic economic stimulus package that is climate friendly， Britain’s economic green shoots are already in evidence.

Steven Jennings， a partner at the global advisory firm PwC， says the lockdown has triggered a paradigm shift for consumers and companies that is already accelerating developments in sustainability – even without prompts from the government.

Those without a banged-up bike in the shed will struggle to buy a new one because of the huge demand. For many， the answer may be shared-cycle schemes， electric scooter rentals or even the purchase of an electric vehicle.

Lime is one of the e-mobility firms booming in lockdown. The company expects to have attracted 20，000 new riders to its shared electric bike rental scheme by the time lockdown lifts and plans to offer e-scooters in the UK soon， too.

Alan Clarke， a director of the firm， says the number of new Lime users has grown every week since lockdown restrictions started to be eased and that riders are taking longer journeys than before. The growth comes despite a surge in competition from rivals at Mobike， Freebike and Uber’s cycle offering， Jump.

“Ultimately， the biggest reason people don’t cycle， walk or e-scoot is because most of the time， city infrastructure doesn’t prioritise these modes of transport，” Clarke says. “As governments are now being forced to rethink how they approach urban travel， and organisations like TfL deliver bold and transformative improvements， we do anticipate an influx of new riders over the next few months， as people search out alternative travel options.”

The number of people considering the purchase of an electric vehicle is rising， too; in part because the connection between Covid-19 deaths and air pollution has underlined the importance of clean transport. PwC estimates that government incentives could help the sector support 220，000 jobs.

Ian Johnston， the chief executive of the vehicle-charging firm Engenie， says there has been a huge uplift in the number of retail parks preparing to install charging points. The company fits rapid chargers on behalf of retail landlords and councils at no upfront cost， in exchange for a 50∶50 split on the charge-point revenues.

“Landlords are looking for new streams of revenues and retail tenants need new ways to drive footfall back to their stores，” he says. “The economic pressure on both means people are taking another look at vehicle charging.”

A boom in electric transport holds important implications for Britain’s energy system， offering new opportunities for green tech companies. The demand slump during the lockdown combined with record renewable energy generation has helped to provide “a window into the future net zero carbon world”， according to Jennings.

排队的人“多得离谱”，自行车修理初创企业“灰胡桃树自行车行”的老板加文·赫德森说道。在封锁令颁布后，他就开始在伦敦北部一座卫理公会教堂的停车场内修理旧自行车，后来他又将修车行搬进了克劳奇恩德一家停业的酒吧。不过，对自行车修理需求激增意味着，这个突然冒出来的修车行不久就能租得起固定的营业场所了。

赫德森说：“一些来修车的人告诉我们，他们有10年没骑过自行车了。”他说：“他们从仓库里拖出来各种各样挂着蜘蛛网的自行车，让它们重新上路。这太棒了。我认为，当今社会几乎没有什么问题是不能通过让人们多走路、多骑自行车得到改善的，这千真万确。”

灰胡桃树自行车行是无数将在疫情后从绿色经济繁荣中获利的英国企业之一。当前，政府面临的压力越来越大，都是要求其出台一揽子对环境友好的疫后经济刺激计划，与此同时，英国绿色经济已初见端倪。

国际咨询公司普华永道的合伙人史蒂文·詹宁斯说，封锁令引发了消费者和企业思维方式的巨大转变，这种转变在政府还没有给予鼓励的情况下就已经在推动可持续性加速发展。

由于需求强劲，那些仓库里没有旧自行车的人很难买到一辆新自行车。对许多人来说，解决办法也许是共享自行车，租赁电动滑板车，或者干脆购买一辆电动汽车。

“酸橙”共享单车就是在疫情下蓬勃发展的电动出行企业之一。该公司预计到解封时将吸引两万名新用户加入其共享电动自行车服务，还计划不久后在英国推出共享电动滑板车服务。

“酸橙”共享单车公司的董事艾伦·克拉克说，自封锁措施开始放宽以来，新用户的数量每周都在增加，而且用户骑行的距离也比以往增加了。尽管有来自对手摩拜单车、自由单车和优步旗下“跳跃”共享单车的激烈竞争，但该公司还是实现了增长。

克拉克说：“归根结底，人们不骑自行车、不步行或不骑电动滑板车的最大原因就是，大多数时候，城市基础设施不重视这些交通方式。由于现在政府不得不重新思考如何对待城市交通，而且伦敦交通局等机构也通过大胆改革作出改进，我们的确预计，未来几个月，随着人们纷纷寻找另外的交通方式，选择骑行的人数将猛增。”

正在考虑购买电动汽车的人数也在增加，部分原因是新冠肺炎死亡病例与空气污染之间的关系凸显清洁交通方式的重要性。据普华永道估计，政府的激励措施可能会为这一产业提供22万个就业岗位。

电动车充电企业Engenie的首席执行官伊恩·约翰斯顿说，准备安装充电桩的零售商业区的数量大幅攀升。该公司以零预付费的方式为零售商业区的业主和市政服务机构安装快速充电桩，作为回报，它获得充电桩50%的分账收入。

他说：“业主们正在寻找新的收入来源，零售租户们也需要新的方式推动客源回流。两者承受的经济压力意味着，人们将重新审视电动车充电业务。”

电动交通的蓬勃发展对英国能源系统意义重大，为绿色科技企业提供了新的机遇。詹宁斯说，封锁期间（对传统交通方式的）需求大幅下滑加上创纪录的可再生能源生产，帮助提供了“一个通往未来净零碳世界的契机”。（刘白云译自英国《卫报》网站7月6日文章）