CYCLISTS grappling with a puncture or problematic gears can ride to a new public repair stand.

The clever piece of kit has been installed outside Rose Hill Community Centre and houses free-to-use tools to perform basic repairs such as changing a flat tyre or adjusting brakes.

It was unveiled during Rose Hill Cycling Festival, which aimed to inspire more people to get on their bikes and was jointly organised by Cyclox, the community centre and Rose Hill and Iffley Low Carbon. 

Eleanor Watts, chairwoman of the latter, said: “A lot of people have been using the new repair stand, including police [based at the centre] and a lot of youngsters.

“One of the reasons people don’t cycle is because it can be expensive to maintain a bike.”

More than 200 people enjoyed the festival on June 17, which featured activities such as electric bike rides and bike repair workshops by social enterprise Broken Spoke.

There was even a ‘best-dressed’ bike contest, won by Rose Hill Primary School pupil Demi Lovatt, who decorated her bike with flags to celebrate the World Cup.

Attendees enjoyed cycling talks from guest speakers, as well as music, face-painting and food courtesy of Rose Hill Junior Youth Club.

Ms Watts said: “We wanted to involve not just cyclists but also ‘would-be’ cyclists.

“We were very pleased that about 50 people tried the electric bikes.”

Rose Hill and Iffley Low Carbon hopes to make Rose Hill the first zero-carbon estate in the country, and Ms Watts said cycling played a key role.

She added: “That’s our ultimate aim and who knows if we will reach it, but Rose Hill has achieved a lot in the past few years.”

She said she would be keen to see more bike repair kits around the city, but noted it was costly.

The stand in Rose Hill cost about £700 and was jointly funded by Low Carbon Hub, Oxford City Council, Oxfordshire County Council, the Co-op and Community Action Group Network.

Saskya Huggins of Low Carbon Hub, said the group was ‘proud’ to count Rose Hill and Iffley Low Carbon as part of its community.

She added: “They work so hard on many fronts to reduce the carbon emissions of our local communities.

"This repair kit is a perfect example of the brilliant and practical work they are doing.”

Louise Upton, the city council’s cycling champion, said: “It’s fantastic that we’re making cycling more accessible in a creative and practical way.”