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Lyft renames its Bay Area bike-sharing program Bay Wheels
Today, Lyft is renaming its Bay Area bike share system. It's now Bay Wheels, no longer Ford GoBike. As part of the transition, the company is introducing new e-bikes with pedal assist for hills and the option to dock the bikes or lock them outside of a station. According to a press release, riders will be able to access the bikes with just two taps in the Lyft app.
Lyft removes e-bikes from various cities over unexpectedly strong brakes
Lyft-owned bike-sharing services are removing electric bikes from their respective fleets in New York, Washington and San Francisco citing safety concerns. Citi Bike, Capital Bikeshare, and Ford GoBike recalled the e-bikes after "a small number" of users experienced "stronger than expected braking force on the front wheel." The New York Times reports that "dozens" of Citi Bike riders in NYC have reported injuries while riding the e-bikes, prompting the company to pull 1,000 electric bicycles from the streets.
Ford's electric GoBikes have arrived in San Francisco
Bike-sharing company Motivate is expanding its San Francisco offering to include electric versions of Ford's GoBikes. They'll be available at no extra cost in the same way as Ford's regular GoBikes, which can be unlocked with the accompanying app or via the Clipper card. The roll out will initially include 250 bikes, which are designed to give riders an added boost while pedalling -- up to 18mph in fact -- so you'll still be able to ride in bike lanes.
Uber’s latest venture is a bike-sharing service in San Francisco
Uber's piloting a new service in San Francisco alongside dockless bike-sharing startup Jump. Uber Bike will let users rent one of Jump's 250 bikes, charging $2 for the first 30 minutes and an additional per-minute fee thereafter. Jump was granted a permit by the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency earlier this month, which made it the first company to operate a dockless bike-sharing program in the city. Jump's 250 bikes should launch around the city between now and March and the SFMTA may allow the company to release 250 more after nine months, depending on how things go. The permit was issued for 18 months, during which the SFMTA will evaluate the program and the public's response.
Ford dabbles in shuttles and bike sharing in San Francisco
Not content with just announcing that it'll have autonomous car sharing available in five years, Ford is now adding two more means of transportation for urban areas: bikes and shuttles. In front of San Francisco city hall, CEO Mark Fields announced that the automaker had purchased local shuttle service Chariot, and proceed to show off a new fleet for a bike sharing system.
