[Lone Ranger]

Originally Posted by GTO

Will be interesting to see if they can make a business out of it. Considering Zoom is primarily in the car rental business, cycles will contribute peanuts to their bottomline (if at all it picks up). This might be more of a CSR / PR exercise than anything serious.

Totally agree about the impracticality of running this as a business. It takes a lot of determination to ride a bicycle on our roads and one has to be a fitness freak and/or eco warrior. I don't mean either of these terms derogatorily by the way, I used to ride a bicycle on the roads myself. But I live in Delhi and given the state of our air quality, I realized that I was probably doing myself more harm than good by spending one and a half hours everyday outside with elevated heart rates! So now I am reduced to pedalling away on a indoor stationary trainer with an air purifier for company
Also, given where bicycle riders stand in the pecking order on the road, it is not all a pleasant experience riding in peak hour traffic. You get sick of your own life because you see a replay flash before your eyes every five minutes.

[GTO]

In other news, investors are BIG on bike-sharing. Don't forget that Zoom Car is also venture-funded. This move could have been initiated to please existing / future investors.

Investors are hot on bike sharing because the Chinese companies have proven it can be a big business, according to Bill Maris, who invested in LimeBike via his new firm Section 32. What’s more, they’ve figured out basics like how to enter a market, how to build internet-connected bikes that lock themselves, and how much to charge. (LimeBike is as inexpensive as $1 a ride). “A lot of questions have been answered,” he says.

The bike-share companies are spending their venture funding aggressively to compete. Like Uber and Lyft, the bike-share companies argue that they can turn a profit in markets where they’ve operated the longest. Unlike Uber and Lyft, they don’t have to pay drivers, though they have to maintain bikes, replace stolen ones, and move ones parked inappropriately. Sun says LimeBike can be profitable if each of its bikes is used two to three times a day. “The model works, but we need a lot of bikes,” he says. “People ride more because they see the bikes. It’s very simple.” The influx of competition means LimeBike is pedaling as fast as it can.

[SmartCat]

OK Good. Uber/Ola/Zoomcar are all a bit like Robin Hood.

They take money from the rich (VC Fund investors) and give it to poor (you and me, via subsidized rides)

[narayan]

The bike sharing services are quite popular here in Singapore with atleast 3 well known service providers.

+
1. Quite cheap. rates are in the region of ~$1-2 per hour but most providers bill you in 15min buckets
2. Totally hassle free. Sign up with your credit card. Some ask for deposit.
3. No need to return cycle to the pick up pt. You can leave the cycle at your destination at some place that doesn't hinder other's way
4. Singapore has a great cycling infrastructure. So this service is of practical use to many


-
1. Some have gears - most don't. Can be difficult for the not so healthy folks even in moderate inclines
2. wheel size is average to suit people of different heights. So if you are anything above 5'8-10" - you are really pedaling hard all the time.
3. Ride can be a bit hard because these cycles come with solid rubber tyres. Some have a unique tyre construction - solid rubber with many circular holes made ( for that cushioning ) - still not as good as usual air filled ones
4. If you cycle regularly, this will turn out to be expensive. Which is why I bought my own cycle here. For $100 you can get a basic model NEW cycle which comes with a 6 gears atleast. If you buy used - for a budget of $50-60 you can get a pretty good alloy frame bike with front shocks and shimano gears. Bike sharing could cost you twice as much in a year even if you are cycling just 2-3 times a week.

I really doubt how this will work in India - but then India is unique in the sense that there can be pockets of opportunity which these players would have to identify.

[sachinayak]

PEDL has gone hi-tech, and it is quite superb. Now you can track cycle availability online, book a cycle without any attendant and (best of all) you can drop off the cycle at a different designated spot rather than your pick-up spot.

The cycles too have changed. These are brand new unisex cycles (is much appreciated now by my daughter), come with a basket to carry knick-knacks, have a funky bell and come with remote locking (which is super cool). And did I mention this is super cheap? 10 Bucks an hour (official rate), but there is an offer currently of 1 Re for half hour (exactly what I would pay for a rental cycle as a kid, 25 years back).

Will split my review in 2 posts, this one on the booking experience and the following one on the cycle itself.

To begin with you need to go to their website pedl.in and search for cycles in your neighborhood. Create an account and link it with your PayTM wallent (which is perhaps the only mode of payment).




Once you go to a pickup point, use their website to scan the QR Code on your desired cycle or manually enter the cycle number. Then wait (patiently). Took me some 5 attempts before it actually worked, but when it did, it was so cool. The cycle gets unlocked remotely. And you see the trip meter starting on your browser.





When you are done with your trip, just go to a designated PEDL stop (and you can see there are many in HSR Layout). And click on "Stop Trip". The cycle gets locked and trip cost gets deducted from your PayTM Wallet. As easy as that.





You are asked for feedback on the cycle condition when you drop off the same (forgot to take a screenshot of that).

[sachinayak]

Part 2 - The Cycle




Pedl now offers brand new cycles, with subtle changes that are very welcome. These are unisex cycles. Brand new ones, so the condition is excellent. Seat heights are easily adjustable. The cycles have baskets upfront (which can carry up to 5Kgs IIRC). The baskets are bolted on to the cycle frame and not the handle. So when you turn, the basket does not (and for some reason, I found it initially a bit unnerving). The cycles, though, are quite nice looking and in bright green (so no risk of being unnoticed even in poor lighting conditions).






Booking, as mentioned earlier, is done by scanning the QR code (or manually entering the cycle number). The auto unlocking of this is very spooky (and funky at the same time).







The cycle comes with a rotary bell, which is quite unique. Have not seen anything like this before, and kids found it amusing too.






The only complaint I had was that the brakes were a bit weak. These too are not the standard cycle brakes, but some kind of drum brakes. Nevertheless, when returning the cycle, I posted feedback on the brakes (they have option to note complaint on brakes, tires, bell, pedal etc.) as well as informed one of the PEDL attendants at this specific spot (where I returned the cycle)





Overall, a great experience and would recommend all folks in the neighborhood to try it out.

[TejasKinger]

Close on the heels of Zoomcar, Ola too seems to be venturing into cycle rentals albeit on a slightly different model. This seems to be limited to restricting cycles within specific areas such as townships, campuses, tech parks, etc.

but they have named the rental service 'Pedal' as well. Talk about being namesakes.

Here's a video that explains more:

http://youtu.be/BNN8EI9GCzQ

Read more: https://inc42.com/buzz/cab-aggregato...ing-ola-pedal/

[TejasKinger]

Good times for bicycle-sharing startups - Alibaba-backed bicycle-sharing firm Ofo enters India via Chennai.

Quoting from the ToI article: "Launched in 2014, Ofo offers a 'non-docking', bicycle-sharing platform, operated via an online mobile application. The company has over 100 million registered users across 180 cities globally. Ofo will import bikes into India which will be available in Chennai, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad and Indore, Chinese news agency Xinhua reported."

Read more here: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...w/61954402.cms

With Ola Pedal and Zoomcar PEDL already in this space, Ofo being the only traditional bicycle sharing service, it might set the cat among the pigeons. In all, it is a good time for consumers.

[2000rpm]

Just spoke to the team deploying the network. The value proposition is very weak for the host. Mostly in the form of percentage discounts on zoomcar hire,percentage discounts on travel websites, etc.

Anyone with pure business sense will never provide premises for such use, considering the risk involved from unknown people accessing the premises.

[opendro]

Very innovative. Sadly, it is doomed to fail without cycling tracks on our roads. Beijing banned such bike shares a couple of months back as they considered it as nuisance! Imagine hundreds of cyclists on the road sharing with motorcycles without demarcated lines. Neither the bikers nor the motorists will like that experience.

[bharatbits]

Originally Posted by opendro

Very innovative. Sadly, it is doomed to fail without cycling tracks on our roads. Neither the bikers nor the motorists will like that experience.

I too don't like trucks on our roads. I think they are unsafe and a nuisance. But, we can't stop them.

Roads are meant for all it's citizens.

[Sankar]

Does it come with free fuel like a burger or vada when we rent the cycles? Last time i rented a zoom car the fuel was free.

Originally Posted by sachinayak

The only complaint I had was that the brakes were a bit weak. These too are not the standard cycle brakes, but some kind of drum brakes. Nevertheless, when returning the cycle, I posted feedback on the brakes (they have option to note complaint on brakes, tires, bell, pedal etc.) as well as informed one of the PEDL attendants at this specific spot (where I returned the cycle)

Attachment 1701936

Attachment 1701933

A band type brake, similar to some old jeep handbrakes which acted on the prop shaft.

Probably they went this route to prevent brake shoe thefts, the pedl bikes on the first page had normal brakes.

[opendro]

Originally Posted by bharatbits

I too don't like trucks on our roads. I think they are unsafe and a nuisance. But, we can't stop them.

Roads are meant for all it's citizens.

Well, roads were earlier used mainly by pedestrians, then by bullock carts and bicycles. Today, Kolkota has a long list of roads where bicyclists and rickshaw pullers are banned and fined.

I'm an ardent cyclist. I had been cycling since my 6th standard in 1988 with just a few years break during my college days and initial work years. I can cycle at twice the pace of Bangalore traffic and pretty good in bike handling. But we cannot expect a commoner to be riding among the motor vehicles. It is just unsafe. Some move very slow too.

We desperately need a dedicated cycling infrastructure.

[CANPUSH]

Does it have intermediate temporary locking option?

For example, if I have to go to a grocery shop 1 km away buy something and come back. Does it allow me to lock the cycle while I am in the shop so that nobody runs away with cycle I have hired?

[deetjohn]

Originally Posted by TejasKinger

Good times for bicycle-sharing startups - Alibaba-backed bicycle-sharing firm Ofo enters India via Chennai.

The news reminded me of the pictures below that I saw in The Guardian some time back.





At first glance that looks like abstract art, but it is a mangled heap of discarded bicycles covering an area roughly the size of a football pitch, and so high that cranes are needed to reach the top.

And knowing how well we treat the rented cars, I hope we don't see heaps like that in our cities soon.