Cyclists in Gloucestershire to be paid as they peddle
It's part of County Council efforts to improve infrastructure in the area
As part of its strategy to promote cycling and active travel, the council is asking cyclists across the county to help them to improve bike infrastructure by playing a mobile game that offers cash rewards.
The game encourages players to explore the county and keep fit, while also earning money in the process.
In a UK first, the council has teamed up with Finnish software startup, Crowdsorsa, to provide a crowdsourced data collection event to survey the condition of the county’s cycling infrastructure.
The mobile game allows riders to collect virtual fruits and berries worth money, these are collected by recording video footage of the cycle routes ridden.
The survey will start at 10am on Thursday, 2 June, and anyone with a smartphone, bike and phone holder can take part.
The game shows users over 250 miles of cycling routes on a map, all covered with virtual fruit and berries, and the more of these they collect – the more money they earn.
Each mile of cycle route has around £2.50 worth of objects to collect.
Cllr David Gray, Cabinet member responsible for green transport and the environment, said: “This is an exciting opportunity for cyclists across the county to get out on their bikes and earn some money in the process.
“The video footage captured in this survey will give a valuable insight into the state of our cycling infrastructure in Gloucestershire and let us know where improvements need to be made."
Anyone with a smartphone, a bike and a phone holder can take part in the survey. The Crowdsorsa mobile game will soon be able to be downloaded for free from the App Store and Google Play.