BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news
Bike share programmes such as the London Hire Scheme are run for the benefit of the public. Some companies and councils operate ad hoc bike pools for their staff but the California Energy Environmental Protection Agency (Cal/EPA) is going one better by trialling a large, employee-only bike share programme using BionX electric bikes.
The four week project is to test bike sharing at Cal/EPA’s Sacramento HQ.
BionX is selling the scheme thus:
"Imagine a system where powerful and reliable pedal-assisted electric powered bicycles would be available for your employees on a private-owned basis bike share program. Employees could walk up to the base station, swipe their user card, and the automatic locking system would release their bike, fully charged and ready to travel up to 60 miles, to do whatever errands they needed to run, whether commuting, heading for lunch, doing some sightseeing, or shopping around town."
The bike stations being trialled by Cal/EPA are self-contained modular units that can host bikes for employees, clients and visitors.
The trial is being supported by Green Technology, Cal/EPA, and the City of Sacramento.
Project partner Ecotron, Systems Inc. will manufacture the docking stations. These measure trip logging and have hoardings that can be branded with advertising and corporate colours.
BionX is a brand of EPS Inc. of Canada, a division of Magna Marque International.
Vincent Lamoureux, Magna Marque’s global sales and marketing director, said:
“We are thankful that Cal/EPA and the City of Sacramento, supported by the Governor’s office, have allowed us to the use Cal/EPA facilities to test this program. It’s a completely new model for employee, client and visitor bike and e-bike sharing programs on work or educational campuses, and at hotels, tourist destinations and police stations."
