Origins of Bike Sharing
Bike sharing is a concept originating back to the 1960s. However, it was slow to catch on until better technology was developed, which could provide real-time information about the scheme, track the bikes and help safeguard against theft.
Now, bike sharing is booming at an unprecedented rate, largely due to the reasonably low cost of the schemes, and how easy they are to implement compared with other transport infrastructure. And it’s an easy win for governments and urban societies, which can boost their green credentials by embracing such an environmentally friendly design.
In 2004, only 11 cities had adopted bike sharing. Today, more than 1,000 public bicycle schemes of varying sizes and specifications run in more than 50 countries, across five continents.
Europe’s biggest scheme is the Paris Vélib’, with 1,800 stations and more than 20,000 bikes. Hangzhou, China hosts the world’s largest system – three times bigger than Vélib’ – which is set to expand to 175,000 bikes by 2020. Perhaps the most sophisticated scheme is Copenhagen’s Bycyklen, which has a fleet of electric bicycles featuring weather resistant tablets with GPS.
According to recent research into Gothenburg’s Styr & Ställ scheme, if bike sharing is properly promoted, the general population of the city feels that such schemes offer a pro-environmental, inexpensive and healthy mode of transport. In particular, they were seen to complement the city’s public transport services, and give the city a more human-friendly feel.
Now, bike sharing is booming at an unprecedented rate, largely due to the reasonably low cost of the schemes, and how easy they are to implement compared with other transport infrastructure. And it’s an easy win for governments and urban societies, which can boost their green credentials by embracing such an environmentally friendly design.
In 2004, only 11 cities had adopted bike sharing. Today, more than 1,000 public bicycle schemes of varying sizes and specifications run in more than 50 countries, across five continents.
Europe’s biggest scheme is the Paris Vélib’, with 1,800 stations and more than 20,000 bikes. Hangzhou, China hosts the world’s largest system – three times bigger than Vélib’ – which is set to expand to 175,000 bikes by 2020. Perhaps the most sophisticated scheme is Copenhagen’s Bycyklen, which has a fleet of electric bicycles featuring weather resistant tablets with GPS.
According to recent research into Gothenburg’s Styr & Ställ scheme, if bike sharing is properly promoted, the general population of the city feels that such schemes offer a pro-environmental, inexpensive and healthy mode of transport. In particular, they were seen to complement the city’s public transport services, and give the city a more human-friendly feel.
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