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Bike Share in Waterloo Region
#46
Finally, a true bikesharing system that visitors and casual users can make use of!

I worry a little about dockless, though - in my experience, docked systems work much better.  Although I used the dockless Donekybike system twice in Copenhagen and Gothenburg last summer and it worked well, but online I've read that China and Paris have absolutely horrible problems with them.

I'll be very interested to learn more about the actual bikes themselves - SoBi has the best bikes of any sharing system I've used (super robust with a drive shaft, Shimano internally geared hub and Shimano INTER-M brakes); Donkeybike probably the worst (really flimsy step-through frames, no basket, and a SRAM Automatix internally geared hub which is just terrible. The electric Cafe Lock system is interesting.).  I tried several times to use DB's system in Germany without any luck at all (couldn't get the payment to work). Cincinnati has an excellent system as well with well-built bikes.
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#47
Oh wow, this is really good.



As much as I like hugely complex systems like SoBi and thought the electronic cafe lock was cute on the Donkey bike system, this is really simple and robust.

I'm excited for my friends and family to come visit, and to be able to go on bike rides with them here!!

Is there any timing listed on when the system will start?
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#48
No specific timing yet, they'll need to negotiate a bunch of details, but they need a council go-ahead first. But DropBike was selected partly because they could be running quickly, and they did not want to go a summer without bikes being available. So hopefully we'll have this by early summer ...
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#49
(04-06-2018, 09:05 PM)Canard Wrote: I'm excited for my friends and family to come visit, and to be able to go on bike rides with them here!!

Another option: own 8 bicycles. (But you really have to have a garage and not put a car in it to do that.)
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#50
We were in Hamilton today exploring and ended up using SoBi again. Such a good system!

What is the status of this new system we’re supposed to have been getting here?
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#51
(07-02-2018, 02:44 PM)Canard Wrote: We were in Hamilton today exploring and ended up using SoBi again. Such a good system!

What is the status of this new system we’re supposed to have been getting here?

Hasn't been any news that I've heard, but unless something has changed, a launch should be imminent--within the next few weeks.
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#52
(07-02-2018, 03:02 PM)danbrotherston Wrote: Hasn't been any news that I've heard, but unless something has changed, a launch should be imminent--within the next few weeks.

Since this is a thread about bike share, I thought I might mention my experience in Seattle this spring. They have a number of competing dockless bikeshare stations now. At first I thought it was weird to see these bikes in random places (though you're not supposed to leave them in the way). But they are quite useful for going places where there aren't docks---I've had dock anxiety in Toronto, hoping that there'd be a station near my destination.

I used both LimeBike and ofo. I started with LimeBike and got some free credits, but then they wanted me to buy $20 of credits, which doesn't really make sense when I'm there for 2 days, so I signed up with ofo and got more free credits. It's like $1/hour for both of these, or maybe a bit more for an ebike. Some of the LimeBike bikes had mechanical problems which I reported. They generally were standard bikeshare bikes (ie somewhat slow and heavy), and the apps worked well enough.

Seattle also has helmet laws for bicyclists and a surprisingly high number of bicycles for a place with helmet laws, although traffic is really bad, so that probably helps. Most people on their own bikes have helmets, but I read that bikeshare users tend to not have helmets (because, well, you might not be carrying around a helmet).
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#53
(07-02-2018, 03:02 PM)danbrotherston Wrote: Hasn't been any news that I've heard, but unless something has changed, a launch should be imminent--within the next few weeks.

Great to hear! But... are you basing that on a schedule released months ago? I'm just thinking if there's been no movement behind the scenes at all, and nobody knows, maybe they've just done nothing and the whole project is cancelled. I would have expected there to be something tangible to show some forward procession with the whole project (signage, ads, new labels on the docks...).
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#54
(07-02-2018, 04:13 PM)Canard Wrote:
(07-02-2018, 03:02 PM)danbrotherston Wrote: Hasn't been any news that I've heard, but unless something has changed, a launch should be imminent--within the next few weeks.

Great to hear!  But... are you basing that on a schedule released months ago?  I'm just thinking if there's been no movement behind the scenes at all, and nobody knows, maybe they've just done nothing and the whole project is cancelled.  I would have expected there to be something tangible to show some forward procession with the whole project (signage, ads, new labels on the docks...).

We heard from them at the join active transportation committee meeting between all the city's an regional active transportation committees.  That was...Jun 7th I think.  So it's been about a month.  

At the meeting they said they were finalizing paperwork and agreeing on locations with a goal of launch in July.  The company representative said they were strongly motivated to make it happen quickly.

Beyond that, I have not heard anything.

I don't know that there will be a lot of evidence before hand.  The company is a startup, with low overhead, and a lot of work in house...they could probably apply new signage and deploy bikes within a couple of days, maybe even day of launch, it's not like they need to get dozens of contractors aligned.  Their colour even matches the existing docks.

But I will ask our regional representative at our next Region ATAC meeting (if it hasn't launched by then anyway).
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#55
For the record the name is Dropbike - go ahead and install their app on your phone now and you'll be ready the moment they launch!
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#56
(07-02-2018, 06:13 PM)KevinL Wrote: For the record the name is Dropbike - go ahead and install their app on your phone now and you'll be ready the moment they launch!

How will one access them without a smartphone?
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#57
Thanks Dan! I didn’t realize there was an update form them in June - I was thinking the only info was from the release many months ago. Very good to hear they’re on-track.
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#58
(07-02-2018, 06:16 PM)panamaniac Wrote:
(07-02-2018, 06:13 PM)KevinL Wrote: For the record the name is Dropbike - go ahead and install their app on your phone now and you'll be ready the moment they launch!

How will one access them without a smartphone?

I don't believe that's possible, given how their system works (a QR code must be scanned, they give you the lock code; you must scramble to a new lock code and give the location and code when you leave the bike).
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#59
You also have to take a picture of the bike in the location where you left it.
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#60
Still no signs of any progress:

   
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