Dock-less Bicycles - the final piece of an urban transportation infra-structure.

Have you driven in Seattle recently? Or tried to find a place to park? Driving into the city is an ever more challenging undertaking. Shared, dock-less bicycles may be the final piece of the solution for those who want to just park their cars in favor of alternate transportation.

I saw my first dock-less bicycle technology late this summer while walking in the south Lake Union area when I wandered past randomly parked neon colored bikes - lime green, orange, and yellow. Each had a unique rear wheel lock and digital QR code.

Shared bicycles have been around for years, but were inconvenient being limited by the need to rent (and return) them at established docking stations which were often blocks away from where you wanted to start or finish your ride. This was a major factor in the limited use of the Seattle Pronto bike share program which in turn led to its bankruptcy earlier this year. 

Now GPS and wireless wheel locking technology have changed the game for bike sharing.

In a hurry to get to the bus? Grab a bike. Late for an appointment? Grab a bike. All you need is a smart phone, a dock-less bike app, and a credit card.

First step - find a bike. The smart phone app points you to the location of available bikes, usually within a few blocks of your location. 

Then take a short walk and find the readily identified neon colored bike. 

Finally, scan the individual QR code on the bike with the smart phone camera, and as you provided a credit card when you activated the app, it is remotely unlocked.

You now have a bike to ride to the destination of your choice. When you arrive, park the bike anywhere and re-engage the lock - and no additional hassle to find a docking station.

You will be (painlessly) charge a dollar per half hour of actual use.

Lime Bikes (one of 3 pilots in Seattle) launched its pilot in July, 2017, with 2000 bikes and intends to expand to 10,000 bikes within a year. The other two pilots (Orange and Yellow bikes) have similar plans.

This exponential rate of growth of dock-less biking around the world has revitalized the dying bicycle manufacturing industry in China. Planned production to meet dock-less cycling bike demands is estimated as equivalent to 50 percent of the whole industry’s current 2017 capacity.

As with all new technologies, there are a few challenges to fix before we reach the final product. 

You need to bring your own helmet (it is the law in Seattle, although loosely enforced). Too many parked bikes on the sidewalk will soon become clutter rather than convenience so the city needs to bring some rationale to where they can be left. And finally there is the issue of breakdowns and theft.

I predict dock- less bikes will be the "disruptive" technology that is going to change how we get about in our large and congested cities. They are the final piece in the urban transportation puzzle, faster than walking and cheaper than Uber.

Assuming the problems with car congestion and parking continue to get worse, I think we are seeing how we can implement a bridge to span the gap between walking and the fixed rail/bus systems for longer distances. As well as a great solution for short distance trips to the local grocery store.

References:

https://www.geekwire.com/2017/cycle-share-overload-deluge-neon-bikes-hits-seattle-just-start/

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/07/dockless-bike-sharing-lands-in-seattle-and-leads-us-down-unsavory-alleyways/