Dallas BikeShare: VBikes, LimeBike, Spin, Ofo, Mobike

[soco]

The City is already exploring various parking strategies to manage the bikes in the right-of-way. Ideas include saturating the service area with bike racks, bike corrals in high destination areas, etc. Downtown Dallas Inc. has pledged to install over 100 racks in the downtown area. The City is looking into buying more racks and continuing to have them installed throughout the core area like has already been done in downtown, Deep Ellum, and the Cedars. Staff has also been in contact with trail 'friends' groups to address bike parking along the trails.

[tamtagon]

Thanks soco!

The bike rental companies share a funding responsibility.

[soco]

Agreed. We've thought about requiring their participation in providing bike parking.

Also, the 311 system is being updated to include a way to report issues related to bike share. Comments/complaints can be logged and sent directly to the specific bike share company. The bike companies are listed by name and bike color so people can identify the proper company. That is going 'live' this week for the online system, and will be online soon for the app.

[DPatel304]

That's great news! I'm really excited to see what more changes come to the city as a result of these bike sharing programs.

The bike rental companies share a funding responsibility.

I'm not so sure I agree. I'm not against them sharing the funding, but Dallas has lagged way behind when it comes to bike infrastructure, and that's not VBikes/Spin/LimeBikes fault. We should be lucky that they even considered this city, considering how unfriendly it is to bikers, and I feel that adding bike racks is simply the city's way of catching up to where they should be.

But hey, even better if these programs to want to help with the funding.

[Matt777]

These bike sharing companies have made a wonderful and super rapid impact on Dallas. I see people on these everywhere. Last week, I was having a lovely dinner at the food hall in the Farmer's Market, watching patrons arrive on their vBikes, and I was very impressed. I don't think the bike share companies should be responsible for additional bike rack costs. That's something the city should have been doing for years and has just dropped the ball. Not the companies' fault.

[lakewoodhobo]

These bike sharing companies have made a wonderful and super rapid impact on Dallas. I see people on these everywhere. Last week, I was having a lovely dinner at the food hall in the Farmer's Market, watching patrons arrive on their vBikes, and I was very impressed. I don't think the bike share companies should be responsible for additional bike rack costs. That's something the city should have been doing for years and has just dropped the ball. Not the companies' fault.

I know it's making a difference when even my friends (99% of which don't care about this civic stuff) start talking about how cool these bikes are and even start using them. Still not seeing how they will be profitable given how some bikes are being destroyed and/or sometimes used by some shady characters who probably aren't paying for them, but I really hope they stick around.

[Tivo_Kenevil]

These bike sharing companies have made a wonderful and super rapid impact on Dallas. I see people on these everywhere. Last week, I was having a lovely dinner at the food hall in the Farmer's Market, watching patrons arrive on their vBikes, and I was very impressed. I don't think the bike share companies should be responsible for additional bike rack costs. That's something the city should have been doing for years and has just dropped the ball. Not the companies' fault.

I know it's making a difference when even my friends (99% of which don't care about this civic stuff) start talking about how cool these bikes are and even start using them. Still not seeing how they will be profitable given how some bikes are being destroyed and/or sometimes used by some shady characters who probably aren't paying for them, but I really hope they stick around.

They sell data.

[cowboyeagle05]

Personally, I would love to see the data after a year. Create a hot map that shows all kinds of patterns. Such data could help improve bike infrastructure for sure but I wonder who else they sell to.

[awrocksu]

Try the Orange Spin Bikes, they are amazing. If you use promo code spinride14 you can get 10 free rides. Just check it out at http://spinbikeshare.com

[The_Overdog]

I saw a Vbike parked outside a restaurant on Preston & Park in Plano on early Saturday morning. Somebody either rode a long way or gave that thing a ride in their car.

[R1070]

Been seeing a lot of homeless appearing folks on these bikes. I'm wondering if they are finding a way to crack them so they can just take them.

[Tivo_Kenevil]

Been seeing a lot of homeless appearing folks on these bikes. I'm wondering if they are finding a way to crack them so they can just take them.

Lol. Hilarious. I have yet to see that. Are you sure they were homeless? It would be mighty difficult without hardware tools to break locks.

[LongonBigD]

I recently saw 3 middle school kids riding. Did they have a credit card? Don't know.

Two thoughts: broken lock OR people don't know how to lock the bikes after they are finished.

[muncien]

Not much here... but the City of Irving looks ready to approve placement of VBikes on Campion trail and other city property. I have recently seen the same bikes at Valley Ranch HOA office. They said they expect to allow them on Valley Ranch trails soon.

6 Resolution - Approving an Agreement with VBikes Technology to Allow
VBikes Bicycles on City Property at No Cost to the City of Irving
Administrative Comments
1. This item is recommended by the Parks and Recreation.
2. Impact: Approval of this agreement will allow VBikes Technology to provide
bicycles along Campion Trails for use by residents and the general public.
3. The VBikes program was presented to TNR on July 5, 2017.
4. Interested parties can download the VBikes app to sign up for service and pay
$1.00 per hour for each ride, or $14.95 per month for unlimited rides.
5. VBikes will operate their program on city property free of charge for a term of one
year, commencing upon execution of this agreement.
6. The agreement has a one-year renewal option and can be terminated at any time
by either party with ten (10) days written notice.
Recommendation
The resolution be approved.

[flyswatter]

This is getting ridiculous...

https://www.dmagazine.com/frontburner/2017/10/dallas-cant-handle-bike-share/

[Tivo_Kenevil]

^ what a crappy article. He says Dallas can't handle Bike share. But doesn't define what "Handles" mean... from what I could infer it means "My biggest complaints are the scattered bikes (Get over it) and vandalized bikes" (Are they yours?)... Yawn....

[DPatel304]

Definitely a poorly written article. This isn't a problem with Dallas, it's a problem with these bike programs. Any city wouldn't be able to handle this many bike share programs (see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdsb2wwn-7g).

[tamtagon]

How much is a good sturdy bike rack? and how much for the installation? People will use the racks if they're there.

[muncien]

What is the city supposed to do? They aren't paying for the bikes... I suppose, they could enforce litter penalties for disabled bikes such as those pictured, but 'banning' bike share would be a MASSIVE mistake.
The only two viable options I see are...
1. Build out infrastructure to support bikes, period. I'm talking about a bike rack on every side of every block... and then require that the bikes be returned to a bike rack when one is available within so many feet (300?).
2. Limit city wide bike share to a SINGLE company, that in turn pays a small fee to the city to help establish infrastructure (bike racks). I don't think this is a good idea, but if you feel you 'have' to do something, this seems somewhat reasonable.

The worse thing the city could do is to heavily regulate bike share. The likes of Amazon and other companies would see such things as contrary to their way of life... no doubt.

[The_Overdog]

I still can't quite figure out if the complaints are real - as in bikes are legitimately scattered and actually *blocking* real foot traffic (which would be a positive sign for foot traffic numbers and needs to be solved) or if they are almost 100% aesthetic, as in a few scattered bikes look messy. From what I've seen (very limited view) the concerns seem to be mostly aesthetic.

BTW, a bike rack costs about $500-$1000 for a dozen bikes and the installation is you just drop it out of a truck and set it on the ground. A fancy installation might involve bolting it to the ground, but that is not necessary except in the worst areas, it's for aesthetics.

[DPatel304]

I still can't quite figure out if the complaints are real - as in bikes are legitimately scattered and actually *blocking* real foot traffic (which would be a positive sign for foot traffic numbers and needs to be solved) or if they are almost 100% aesthetic, as in a few scattered bikes look messy. From what I've seen (very limited view) the concerns seem to be mostly aesthetic.

BTW, a bike rack costs about $500-$1000 for a dozen bikes and the installation is you just drop it out of a truck and set it on the ground. A fancy installation might involve bolting it to the ground, but that is not necessary except in the worst areas, it's for aesthetics.

I don't spend enough time Downtown to say for sure, but I feel like most of it is probably an aesthetic problem. But keep in mind, these bike programs are brand new, and Downtown is still not very lively. Fast forward to 5-10 years from now when there will definitely be more people on the streets, and potentially more bikes and more people using the bikes, then you have a problem that is much more than aesthetic.

[ndtexan]

Dallas isn't the only city with dockless bikeshare issues. DC is having a lot of fun with them too (scroll through the entire linked page for full effect): https://www.popville.com/tag/dockless/

[muncien]

Coming back from downtown yesterday, I decided to grab a V-bike for my last leg instead of waiting for the notoriously slow, midday, suburban buses. I rode over eight miles up Campion trail and beyond... Man, the human body is not designed to sit on those bikes for that long. Ouch. lol

[DPatel304]

So it looks like V-Bike has come out with a version 2.0 of their bikes with a few upgrades:
"7 gears, cup holder, adjustable seat, solar powered and the most comfortable seat ever!"
https://www.facebook.com/VBikesTech/vid ... 603814206/

It seems like VBike is, currently, not the preferred bike share company in Dallas, but I still prefer them because they are a local company. I'm hoping they don't expand to other cities, and put their full focus in the DFW area. If that's the case, I would much prefer a city with 100% of their focus here, rather than some of these other companies that are featured in cities across the globe.

[muncien]

Looks like they're going with traditional chain & sprocket as well as inflatable tires for that version. I actually have no issue with the current tires, but that drive shaft certainly has it's limits, and the new adjustable seat is badly needed.
Maintenance may become an issue though... curious how good those tires are.

[Tivo_Kenevil]

The v bikes were so uncomfortable. This looks good.

[exelone31]

I took a vbike for the first time this past weekend. It was ok, definitely good enough for riding around downtown to a few stops.

I feel the same way as dpatel, I like the fact they're a local company and want to support them. The new model looks great!

[gbud]

http://fortune.com/2017/11/18/chinas-bike-sharing-bubble-goes-bust/

China's bike-sharing bubble goes bust

Interesting article. Hopefully something like this does not happen in the metroplex. I do hope Vbikes becomes a major player, simply because it is local, but I highly doubt it.

Ofo, the 4th bike sharing company to start operations in DFW is mentioned in the article. Did not know it was backed by Alibaba, big pockets there.

[DPatel304]

VBike seems to be working with local businesses, which will certainly help them in the long run. I'm pretty sure they have a deal with Klyde Warren Park to have an allocated VBike space near the park, and same with some alcoholic popsicle store that opened up at Bishop Arts.

These other bike share programs that aren't local are probably not going to take the time to do that here, so, VBike might get more recognition by being in prime locations.

[CTroyMathis]

The 5th entry into Dallas is now Mobike. ICYMI.

So, it is now:

VBikes
LimeBike
Spin
Ofo
Mobike

[tamtagon]

Biking is illegal and morally wrong

biking is bad.jpg

Is there a definition for legal placement of bike-share bikes?

[lakewoodhobo]

Just thinking out loud here, but I wonder if autonomous vehicles will see a similar bubble to this. I can see a Chinese company flooding the market with cars that will either take up parking or clog the streets with empty vehicles looking for a passenger.

[DPatel304]

Just thinking out loud here, but I wonder if autonomous vehicles will see a similar bubble to this. I can see a Chinese company flooding the market with cars that will either take up parking or clog the streets with empty vehicles looking for a passenger.

I didn't even think of that, but I think you're right. Honestly, I think the problem will be worse, because there is a TON of money to be made in this space, and plenty of companies all wanting to be the de facto autonomous car provider.

[muncien]

I would expect autonomous vehicles to be much easier to regulate. Unlike these bikes, which can be left anywhere the last user sees fit, autonomous vehicles can be returned to a more desirable location. I would expect there would be limits on parking restrictions similar to disabled vehicles. ie: no parking on public property (street parking). With that, and similar restrictions by private property owners (Walmart, target, Kroger, etc), these companies will likely need to lease little used garages around the city.
While these bikes need to be located at critical intersections, the auto-taxis can pull out of that Houston st viaduct garage and be at the same intersection in a minute or two... and nobody would think twice about where it was before that...

[CTroyMathis]

As well as a couple of other contenders in stationless bike share coming our way possibly, might as well throw in electric scooter share while we're at it: https://techcrunch.com/2018/02/08/bike- ... r-sharing/

Unlike Spin’s bikes, which you can rent for $1 for 30 minutes, the scooters will be a bit more expensive to rent, costing $1 to unlock and then 15 cents per minute. Spin’s plan is to first launch these scooters in some of its existing markets, which include Seattle, Washington D.C. and Dallas.

[DPatel304]

Very cool. No wonder there is such a fierce bike share war going on right now, whoever ends up 'winning' will be able to be the sole provider of a variety of modes of transportation. Seems like bikes are just the beginning.

I really feel like devices similar to the hover-board and this electric scooter are going to be huge in the next decade.

[The_Overdog]

I'm not sure if Dallas has any bike share regulations yet but the other suburbs are, from the extreme (I believe they are banned in Highland Park) to the reasonable, and the city of Dallas would do well to copy the reasonable ones, which include:

*) limiting the bikes initial placement to a limited number of parks (ie they can't be in every local park - bikes can be in other public places besides parks)
*) homezones, which determine the number of bikes each company can have within the zone
*) escrow fund of $5000 per 1000 bikes to pay the city for any rebalancing or damage they have to fix.
*) weekly rebalancing to comply with the homezone rules.
*) no 3rd party advertising on bikes
The city will add bike racks where share bikes are popular for people to use if they wish, but is not required.
*) only 3 bikes per company at any single location (not sure how far apart locations have to be - I'm assuming its outlined in the homezones.
*) bikes can be parked on sidewalks as long as they are not blocking stuff or ADA ramps.

[cowboyeagle05]

I also propose the city be regulated to actually fix sidewalks where a light pole, sign, etc intercepts ADA widths and prevents safe passage. Create a system for actually repairing missing sidewalks cause the current one isn't working. Also, provide a streamlined permitting/request process for bike parking areas/racks so either communities or companies can request additional infrastructure. Right now it's a complicated process that deters any implementation of good bike infrastructure even if a company/residents are willing to pay for part of it.

Bike Share is finally reminding people why biking has been so lackluster and the choke point is the project management process at city hall. Not just money.

[tamtagon]

I also propose the city be regulated to actually fix sidewalks where a light pole, sign, etc intercepts ADA widths and prevents safe passage. Create a system for actually repairing missing sidewalks cause the current one isn't working. Also, provide a streamlined permitting/request process for bike parking areas/racks so either communities or companies can request additional infrastructure.

word up to your mother

[DPatel304]

Why LimeBike's soon-to-arrive electric fleet could jolt Dallas' bike-share scene
The venture-backed San Francisco Bay Area startup plans to debut electric scooters in Dallas in April and electric bikes by May, said Caen Contee, who leads LimeBike's marketing and partnerships.

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/tec ... e=Facebook

First Spin, and now Limebikes are getting in on the electric bike game. I think an electric bike share program makes public transportation more feasible for a lot of people. Unfortunately, I don't think people will realize this, and I don't see this having much of an effect on public transportation usage in the short term.

[dch526]

Why LimeBike's soon-to-arrive electric fleet could jolt Dallas' bike-share scene
The venture-backed San Francisco Bay Area startup plans to debut electric scooters in Dallas in April and electric bikes by May, said Caen Contee, who leads LimeBike's marketing and partnerships.

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/tec ... e=Facebook

First Spin, and now Limebikes are getting in on the electric bike game. I think an electric bike share program makes public transportation more feasible for a lot of people. Unfortunately, I don't think people will realize this, and I don't see this having much of an effect on public transportation usage in the short term.

It would make me want to use public transportation more. Right now, it's 1.2 miles to the train (25 minutes walking and 20 minutes by bus/walk) and then from the train to my office it is 2.7 miles (50 minutes walking and also 30 minutes bus/walk).

Since I only live 7.5 miles from work, I can drive there in 20-25 minutes without getting on the highway. To take public transportation, it would take me 65 minutes (train/bus/walk) or if I got the closest bus and got as close as I could to the office it would take me 60 minutes (30 minute bus ride + 30 minute walk). Biking to and from each station, it would take me 40 minutes which is doable as long as I am not drenched in sweat (where an electric bike would help out). I live and work all inside the 635 loop

I think it just takes people actually working the numbers to see how long it would take and how much it would cost. That is something that DART should promote more. Calculate how long it would take to get to and from work, how much it would cost, less CO2, est calories burned, etc and then show direct comparisons to driving to let people decide or at least know their options. Maybe send a link to all businesses to share with employees and if you fill out the survey then you get 5 free day passes for the next year and bike share companies could offer 5 free rides for those that complete the survey as well.

[muncien]

Perhaps DART should partner with one of these companies. What if your GOPASS included V-bike usage? Being electronic, it would be easy to track and payout if necessary...

[DPatel304]

Perhaps DART should partner with one of these companies. What if your GOPASS included V-bike usage? Being electronic, it would be easy to track and payout if necessary...

Yeah, that would be ideal. Make sure there are enough bikes at each station at all times as well.

V-Bike should get on it. They seem to be lagging behind as others are soon about to offer electronic bikes, but I'm still rooting for V-Bike simply because they are local.

[DPatel304]

LimeBike & Bird: Rental electric scooters could be coming to Dallas streets
“We take them all off the street every single night so they don't stay out overnight,” said Matt Shaw, Director of Government Relations for Bird. “We take them off the street, we do a safety check on them, they get charged and they get put back in what we call nests in the morning. We put them in nice small groups out of the way."

http://www.fox4news.com/news/rental-ele ... as-streets

I think scooters make more sense than bikes, personally, so I'm really excited to see these hit the roads. Plus, based on this quote, it sounds like they will be taking the scooters in every night, which would mostly eliminate the 'clutter' that we have seen with some of the bikes.

EDIT: Added 'bird' along with Limebike in the title.

[CTroyMathis]

Bird scooters may also be coming to town. The ones from LA area. Members of Downtown Dallas, Inc. were riding some around downtown or at least posing with the scooters the other day.

https://www.bird.co/

[DPatel304]

Whoops. I kinda skipped the article when I posted it and didn't realize Bird was another scooter company, so I thought this was just Limebike. I edited my post to include Bird as well, thanks!

[DPatel304]

This isn't really relevant to Dallas, but it looks like Austin might be invaded by dockless bike share companies soon:
http://www.kxan.com/news/local/austin/a ... 1102324255

If this happens, I wonder what that would mean for BCycle. I can't think of any reason anyone would use BCycle if you had the option to use a dockless bike. I'm not sure what BCycle's rates are, but I'm almost certain they are quite a bit more expensive too.

[muncien]

This isn't really relevant to Dallas, but it looks like Austin might be invaded by dockless bike share companies soon:
http://www.kxan.com/news/local/austin/a ... 1102324255

If this happens, I wonder what that would mean for BCycle. I can't think of any reason anyone would use BCycle if you had the option to use a dockless bike. I'm not sure what BCycle's rates are, but I'm almost certain they are quite a bit more expensive too.

I was down in San Antonio last weekend and had a similar thought. I don't remember what it was called, but they too have a docked bike rental system. It was way too expensive and cumbersome. Oh, how I missed the plethora of cheap, dockless bikes of Dallas... lol

[tanzoak]

I was down in San Antonio last weekend and had a similar thought. I don't remember what it was called, but they too have a docked bike rental system. It was way too expensive and cumbersome. Oh, how I missed the plethora of cheap, dockless bikes of Dallas... lol

Dallas is legitimately a national leader and case study in bikeshare now. If you compare ridership in the first 6 months of operation to the first 6 months of, say, the Bay Area's bike share system, it compares extremely favorably. Doubly so when you consider there is basically zero bicycle infrastructure in Dallas, everything is so far apart, and considering the ability to scale up even more quickly. It's shown that you can have success even in hostile terrain.

The regulatory approach has also been impressive and a good counterweight to the idea that you need extensive pre-planning or else you'll have a bicycle apocalypse. Assuming they do a good job with it, I like the idea that they'll be using data from these companies to plan their bicycle infrastructure network.

[dfwcre8tive]

Electric scooters and electric assist bicycles are the invaders in SF, currently.

https://sf.curbed.com/2018/4/5/17202690 ... nfo-how-to