Free floating bikes arrive to Brussels
Shared mobility solutions are very popular in Brussels. Several car sharing operators exist, some are offering also 100% electric vehicles. Lately we saw the launch of shared mopeds: a small fleet of 100% electric Vespa style two-wheelers.
But Summer 2017 is full of surprises! Now it's time for dockless bicycles to hit the European capital's streets.
Dockless or free floating bicycles can be unlocked via smartphone and picked-up everywhere in the city. Users don't have to return bikes to a docking station as they would do with a "traditional" shared bicycle scheme.
The first 100 free floating bicycles will be launched and tested in Beta phase in these very days at the end of August 2017.
Bicycles will be initially available in a service area of 10 km2, in the Communes of Ixelles, Etterbeek, Saint-Gilles and Brussels-City. Between now and Spring 2018, the City aims to extend the service to more Communes. (Note: Brussels is formed of 19 Communes.)
The scheme launches for the first time in town electrically powered bicycles. The electric boost shall encourage users to cycle uphill, but also to ride bikes daily to business meetings without arriving soaked in sweat.
If you happen to be in Brussels, try and test a dockless bike. Here's the webpage where to download the App to unlock a bikes: https://www.billy.bike/
Brussels already has a bike sharing scheme with docking stations, Villo!. The scheme boasts 5,000 bikes in service, 360 stations, 40,000 long-term subscribers in 2016 and more than 1.5 million rents last year. All shared bikes systems users are estimated to have travelled 7.5 million km. This is more than 200 times around the earth. Villo! saved approximately 950 tons CO2 emissions.
Source: https://gopressmobility.be/2017/08/29/billy-bike-les-velos-electriques-partages/ (FR)
