Âlan Duval: D E S I G N S Y S T E M S : audits

HISTORY

1960s

In Amsterdam, a visionary by the name of Luud Schimmelpenninch starts the first ever city bicycle program. The concept behind which was to provide free bicycles that would be used for one trip and then left for someone else. Within a month, most of the bikes had been either stolen or vandalized.

1974

La Rochelle, France launches a free bike program with yellow bikes which are also free. Again, a large amount of theft ensued.

1994

Environmentalists Tom O'Keefe, Joe Keating and Steve Gunther start one of the first U.S. city bike programs in Portland, Oregon. They simple release the bikes into the city with un-restricted use.

Some people never learn.

1995

Copenhagen launches a free bike program called ByCyklen which utilizes specialized parts to help deter theft. The system also incorporates a returnable coin system.

Are we getting somewhere? Maybe.

PROBLEM

Few city bicycle programs exist in America, despite the numerous attempts to get them off the ground. The few in effect result in varying degrees of success and myself, and others, agree that they aren't doing enough to create a movement focused on environmentally friendly transportation.

Another huge problem is the issue of theft and vandalism. Anytime a person or a group of people create something beautiful, there is going to be someone who wants to destroy it. We need to prevent this!

One free bike program tried in 1993 in Cambridge, United Kingdom, had all three-hundred bicycles stolen on the first day of operation.

Several other issues are the lack of availability of bicycles even within the relatively functional programs. The program needs to be reliable as a means of 2-way transportation, not people being unable to find a bike to get home after they have gone to the grocery store.

Also, the bikes are rather limited. Actually, extremely limited. Every organization I have found has offered only one kind of crappy road bike. What if someone wants a mountain bike, or a fixed gear, or a ten-speed, or a BMX? We need to be providing the users these options in order to start this trend.

TYPES OF PROGRAMS

Unregulated

Bikes are simply released into a city and expected to be left unlocked in a public area once you reach your destination, as to be available for someone else's use.

problem? theft, lack of availability

Deposit

A small cash deposit releases the bike from a locked terminal and can only be retrieved by returning in to another.

problem? since the deposit is usually only a few coins, this does little to deter theft

Membership

Bicycles are kept either at volunteer-run hubs or at self-service terminals throughout the city. Registered individuals identify themselves with their membership card at any of the hubs to check out a bike for a short period of time (typically less than two hours.)

Long-term Checkout

Bikes are given free of change, for a refundable deposit, or sold at a reduced price. They are assigned to one person who will typically keep the bike for months or years.

problem? much lower using frequency, around three uses per day as compared to between 10-15 uses per day in bike sharing.

Public-private Partnership

Private advertising agencies supply the city with thousands of bicycles free of charge (or for a small fee) in exchange for permission to advertise both on the bikes themselves and on other select locations in the city. They prevent theft by requiring users to pre-purchase user cards with credit cards and by equipping the bike with complex anti-theft and bike maintenance sensors. In case of not returning the bike within a day, the bike sharing operator is allowed to withdraw money from the given credit card account.

TACTICS

Employ a unique frame and part design to deter theft and prevent disassembly and resale of parts
Docking stations which lock the bike until a debit, credit, or membership card is deposited
Incentive to return the bike comes from the return of the initial fee upon return of the bike
Offer different bike options
Membership and deposit instills a sense of accountability and builds a sense of community and ownership within the program
Provide a lock, helmet, and basket upon checkout
Computerized chips tell where the bike is docked, who is riding it, and how long it has been checked out

THE COMPETITION