Bristol Bike Share Scheme
YoBike, not so much a new bike hire scheme, more a new bike sharing scheme founded by a Chinese technology entrepreneur and launched just 6 weeks ago in Bristol, the first location for the UK and of course other bike schemes are available, but none like this one.
These very yellow, sturdy bikes can be picked up wherever you find one, which is supposed to be in the vicinity of existing bike stands or other bike parking facilities or safe & legal place. They are not locked to a stand, rather they use an electro-mechanical clam lock around the rear wheel. To unlock and use the bike you first have to download the app and register. The app communicates with the bike via Bluetooth and the bike with HQ in London by GPS.
To get riding all that needs to be done is to find a bike (easy either visually or through the app map), inspect (easy), launch the app and scan the QR Code on said bike (easy), adjust saddle height (my seatpost was very stiff) and ride away (takes a little getting used to).
Like other existing schemes, these bikes are not lightweight and I found the YoBike steering somewhat twitchy, especially with a small bag in the front rack. My recently purchased Elephant Bike is only slightly heavier but feels much more…. strong and stable! Both have 3 speed Sturmey Archer gears or equivalent.
Otherwise it was good to be on a bike again since my bum operation, albeit a little sooner than perhaps I should be. I headed for the nearby river path behind Temple Meads station. The route incorporated some slight inclines, descents, undulations and bends and so was actually quite good for a quick assessment of the bike. The first, first hour was free otherwise the cost is £1 per hour or £5 a day. Payment is by topping up one’s balance within the app rather like a PAYG mobile phone. Downloading the app makes you a member and there are other options for regular users.
I ended up overrunning my free first hour by 10 mins so my balance stands at -£1. Top-ups can only be in £5 chunks. I’ve sent them a cancellation request via the YoBike Website contact form!
I left the bike where I found it, applied the wheel lock and notified end of ride through the app. There seemed to be no opportunity to report the clicking left pedal and rubbing front brake at that stage, but I mentioned it in my contact form. Having partnered with Life Cycle, a Bristol cycling charity, to maintain the bikes, perhaps they will track the bike down and adjust it. In due course, Life Cycle will be assisted by prisoners at the city’s HM Prison to help assemble, maintain and repair the bikes when necessary, in much the same way as Elephant Bikes operate with their refurbishment of retired Royal Mail bikes.
So very much a win-win scheme it seems. Low cost, convenient, accessible and easy to use. YoBikes plan to expand in the U.K. and another similar company is soon to launch in Cambridge. There are between 300 and 500 bikes dotted around the City of Bristol but some Bristolian cyclists are concerned they are blocking precious cycle stands. One Bike at least has already been vandalised. More worrying is that yesterday’s BBC Business News online reports that a similar system in China has just gone bust after 90% of their bikes went missing. They realised too late that they should have been tracking the bike by GPS rather than the cyclist’s mobile phone! http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-40351409
