Bicycle sharing in cities

This chapter presents an overview of urban bicycle sharing (short-term bicycle rental services available at a network of locations) focusing particularly on the automated docking station-based systems. Such systems, particularly following the large “Velib” system which debuted in Paris in 2007, have becoming increasingly popular in large Western and Asian cities, as many city authorities have seen a bikesharing system both as a genuine contribution to the existing public transport mix and as an amenity that draws tourists and promotes the city itself. Analysing data collected across ten years, this chapter compares many such urban systems, looking at spatial and temporal attributes, along with physical variations and differing political and financial modals. It also introduces the most recent developments in bikeshare systems, in particular pedal-assist and free-floating concepts, and data standardisation efforts, ensuring that bicycle sharing continues along the road to becoming a genuine part of modern urban multi-modal transportation, globally.