Another one bites the dust

[robgul]

Yep - I rode the London Sightseer Audax in London (I seldom go to London) last Sunday and was amazed at a) the number of people on Boris bikes (that's good-ish .... it is Boris after all!) and b) the massive number of dockless bikes strewn around, including loads of the Lime electric ones (that's bad) .... Oxford seems just as bad for abandoned orange bikes in big numbers and in the most unlikely places.

Have to say I can't see the dockless model being realistic with the casual attitudes that people take - the docking systems obviously take massive capital investment against just unloading a lorry-load of dockless bikes on the street. The pictures of bike dumps in China are just amazing - it doesn't work there either.

If there was more bike parking - as in Holland, Belgium, Germany - would it encourage bike ownership (basic machines) ?

Rob

 

[tom73]

Are they the ones where you have to join the queue in the ticket office for a key /token to remove the bike from the stand, and repeat when you take it back? I don't think I've ever seen one in use.

Yes in one ours have never moved. Once you have a key you pay until you hand it back. Ours has a Box for keys out of hours. But the bikes are on the side of the station that you can’t get to out of hours. Even better is if you use the box your still charged till they empty it.

Bike and go more like bike , go and went.

 

[Drago]

I'm wondering if the folk that run the Northampton scheme will be removing the docking stations, digging up the concrete, and restoring the verges to their previous state?

 

[BorderReiver]

Be careful what you wish for. I was reading somewhere (and I don't have a link, sorry) that the bike share schemes in China basically killed off the local "utility" bike shops. There used to be a shop on every corner, then there was a shared bike at every lampost. Why would you buy and maintain a bike when you can hire one for next to nothing? Hence, the shops all closed. Then the bike share schemes collapsed for various reasons so now even if you want a bike for getting around there are few places to buy one and fewer places to get it looked after. Therefore, much less cycling going on.

 

[Jody]

Does dockless actually work anywhere or is it just a stupid idea?

Seems to work well where people have respect for other peoples property or fear of the authorities.

Quite a few people in the UK don't give a sh*t so they end up in the bottom of a canal, burnt, stolen or some cheeky tw*ts were selling them on Gumtree. It didn't last long in Sheffield.

 

[Levo-Lon]

As usual lack of respect.

Makes me laugh now when people complain about lack of facilities etc, when people abuse what’s there what do they expect.

Couldn't agree more.

Scum filled Britain will always bring us down.

 

[classic33]

Are they the ones where you have to join the queue in the ticket office for a key /token to remove the bike from the stand, and repeat when you take it back? I don't think I've ever seen one in use.

That's them. Heavy(22kg), red bikes.

Registered when they were seen rounf these parts, but nigh on impossible to get hold off. Managed twice.

 

[Smokin Joe]

Seems to work well where people have respect for other peoples property or fear of the authorities.

Quite a few people in the UK don't give a sh*t so they end up in the bottom of a canal, burnt, stolen or some cheeky tw*ts were selling them on Gumtree. It didn't last long in Sheffield.

That's the problem. One of the reasons public toilets are disappearing is that councils can't afford the high cost of vandalism.

 

[Dogtrousers]

That's the problem. One of the reasons public toilets are disappearing is that councils can't afford the high cost of vandalism.

Have you seen how much it costs to vandalise a toilet these days? Shocking.

 

[AuroraSaab]

In my very small home town there were several public toilet blocks. All shut now due to vandalism, drug use, and being used as (ahem) inappropriate meeting places. Even our local Sainsbury's has locked the store entrance door that came in near the toilets as it was being used by drug users. You have to pass the security guy now. As usual, a small minority making life harder for the rest of us.

 

[raleighnut]

the reasons public toilets are disappearing

Google 'Cottaging', that's the reason given in Leicester for closing em.

 

[robgul]

An interesting angle on the "dump it anywhere" hire bikes - I saw this in BikeBiz :

https://www.bikebiz.com/bike-sharing-the-silver-bullet-for-environmental-and-public-health/

Essentially the bike has to be left in a designated area which is just a painted box on the ground, controlled by the GPS - as I read it, if you don't leave the bike in the marked box then there's a "fine" added to your hire cost via the app - BUT that fine is on £1 .... perhaps if they made it, say, £25 or even £50 (what does a car parking fine cost these days?) then there would be an incentive to return the bike correctly.

Maybe

Rob

 

[Smokin Joe]

An interesting angle on the "dump it anywhere" hire bikes - I saw this in BikeBiz :

https://www.bikebiz.com/bike-sharing-the-silver-bullet-for-environmental-and-public-health/

Essentially the bike has to be left in a designated area which is just a painted box on the ground, controlled by the GPS - as I read it, if you don't leave the bike in the marked box then there's a "fine" added to your hire cost via the app - BUT that fine is on £1 .... perhaps if they made it, say, £25 or even £50 (what does a car parking fine cost these days?) then there would be an incentive to return the bike correctly.

Maybe

Rob

Pay for a replacement would be better.

 

[Gravity Aided]

Might try bicycle co-ops, pay the volunteers in value of bicycle, get people to work off the bicycle they want. Works pretty well, supplies what people need to get around, folks with bikes they want to get rid of just drop them off, and you'd be surprised how many people want to get a bike out of their garage. Then the person who worked to get the bike has a stake in keeping it up, and it belongs to them. As well, they can borrow our tools to maintain the bike, and get help in doing so. It's a scheme that pays for itself, with minimal input from government. Ours is in the same building as a tool library, which is also a good idea. Pay $60 to join, they have a huge inventory of common and specialty tools.

 

[lane]

Derby introduced an electric bike scheme with docked bikes. Bikes were stolen and ridden round trying to knock cyclists off their bikes on the cycle paths. Other bikes vandalised. Scheme now withdraw and that was a docked scheme.