Londoners can enjoy free Santander Cycle rides every Sunday throughout July, as Transport for London revives its popular Cycle Sundays promotion. The offer, running from 5 July to 26 July, provides unlimited 60-minute rides at no cost for anyone using the scheme on those days.
The free rides are accessed through a set of dedicated promotional codes, one for each Sunday in the month. Riders can redeem the codes on the Santander Cycles discounts page, in the official Santander Cycles app, or at any docking station terminal. To unlock the offer, users must select a Day Pass option and enter the relevant code. A bank card or mobile phone is then required to complete the transaction. The Day Pass, which normally costs £3.50, entitles the holder to unlimited 60-minute rides within a 24-hour period. Each code can be used once per person.
The codes for July are:
CYCLEJULY5 – 5 July
CYCLEJULY12 – 12 July
CYCLEJULY19 – 19 July
CYCLEJULY26 – 26 July
Will Norman, the Mayor of London’s Walking and Cycling Commissioner, said: “Cycling is a fantastic way to get around London, especially now that we’ve grown our Cycleways network by nearly five times, helping people of all abilities to cycle safely across the capital. The Mayor and I encourage everyone – especially those new to cycling – to take up these free Sunday bike rides and to use our cycle routes to travel around our great city as we continue building a safer, greener, better London for all.”
The offer also extends to Santander e-bikes, though these must be hired through the app or with a membership key and are available only to registered members. Membership is free and can be created online or via the app. The Day Pass can be used for e-bikes but only by those who have already signed up. Riders who exceed the 60-minute limit will incur additional charges: £1.65 for each extra 60 minutes on pedal bikes, and £3 for each extra 60 minutes on e-bikes. All bikes must be returned to a docking station at the end of each ride. The promotion is not available to existing annual or monthly Santander Cycles subscribers, nor to any customer with a pending access period.
Expanding the network
The free Sundays form part of a wider push to boost cycling in the capital. Transport for London has expanded the Cycleways network to more than 441 kilometres — almost five times the length in 2016. A further £94.8 million has been allocated for cycling infrastructure across London’s boroughs in the 2026/27 financial year, with a stated goal of having 40 per cent of Londoners living within 400 metres of the strategic cycle network by 2030.
Despite this investment, research indicates that 43 per cent of London cyclists still feel unsafe on the roads. TfL attributes these concerns to factors such as driver behaviour, unclear infrastructure, and pedestrians in cycle lanes. The authority is putting more than £150 million into road improvements this year, with a significant share directed to boroughs.
Using the Santander Cycles app
The official Santander Cycles app allows users to hire bikes by receiving release codes directly on their smartphones, bypassing the need to use a docking station terminal. It also provides real-time information on bike and docking space availability, journey history, and allows users to save favourite docking stations. Some users have reported that the app does not accept non-UK bank information. The app can also be used to view e-bike availability and battery levels.
Beyond the Sunday promotion, Santander Cycles offers a range of subscriptions, including monthly and annual memberships that give unlimited 60-minute rides. Discounts are available for NHS staff (50 per cent off the annual subscription), students, graduates, and holders of concessionary travel cards such as the Freedom Pass and the Bus & Tram Discount photocard. Through the “Cycle to Work” scheme, employees can save up to 47 per cent on subscriptions via salary sacrifice arrangements with partners such as CycleSaver and DASH Rides.
The scheme, originally known as “Boris Bikes”, launched in 2010 with Barclays as its first sponsor. Santander took over sponsorship in 2015. Today it operates in inner and central London, with more than 12,000 bikes at around 800 docking stations. A key fob can be purchased for £3 for easier access, linked to an online account. TfL has also partnered with Strava and komoot to provide curated cycling routes and enhance route discovery for users.
