SOCIAL: velib

[brian kusler]

Citing thefts, Paris "Velib" bike sharing operator wants out
Tue Feb 10, 2009 4:38 pm (PST)

Published Tuesday, February 10, 2009, BBC News (UK)

Thefts puncture Paris bike scheme

A popular bicycle rental scheme in Paris that has transformed travel
in the city has run into problems just 18 months after its successful
launch.

Over half the original fleet of 15,000 specially made bicycles have
disappeared, presumed stolen.

They have been used 42 million times since their introduction but
vandalism and theft are taking their toll.

The company which runs the scheme, JCDecaux, says it can no longer
afford to operate the city-wide network.

Championed by Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoe, the bikes were part of
an attempt to "green" the capital.

Parisians took to them enthusiastically. But the bikes have suffered
more than anticipated, company officials have said.

Vélib extreme

Hung from lamp posts, dumped in the River Seine, torched and broken
into pieces, maintaining the network is proving expensive. Some have
turned up in eastern Europe and Africa, according to press reports.

Since the scheme's launch, nearly all the original bicycles have
been replaced at a cost of 400 euros ($519, £351) each.

The Velib bikes -- the name is a contraction of velo (cycle) and
liberte (freedom) -- have also fallen victim to a craze known as
"velib extreme".

Various videos have appeared on YouTube showing riders taking the
bikes down the steps in Montmartre, into metro stations and being
tested on BMX courses.

Remi Pheulpin, JCDecaux's director general, says the current contract
is unsustainable. "It's simple. All the receipts go to the city. All
the expenses are ours," he said.

The costs, he said, were "so high that a private business cannot
handle it alone, espcially as it's a problem of public order. If
we want the velib set-up to keep going, we'll have to change the
business model," he told Le Parisien newspaper.

Customised

The original contract gave the advertising company a 10-year licence
to exploit 1,600 city-wide billboards in return for running the
scheme, plus a share in the revenue, estimated at 20m euros for the
first year of operation.

City hall has recently agreed to pay towards the costs of replacing
the stolen or trashed bicycles but is refusing to bail out the
company.

Not all the bicycles receive rough treatment however. One velib
repairman reported finding one of the bikes customised with fur
covered tyres.

The scheme was modelled on one in Lyon, which appears to have been
less troublesome, and has been extended to other cities in France.

It is also being copied overseas with London, San Francisco and
Singapore all intending to set up similar schemes.

PARIS CYCLE SCHEME IN NUMBERS

20,000 bicycles
1,250 stations
Cost 400 euros each to replace
7,800 "disappeared"
11,600 vandalised
1,500 daily repairs
Staff recover 20 abandoned bikes a day
Each bike travels 10,000 km a year
42 million users since launch

Source: Velib
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