| Now that we've done all the research into bike-sharing schemes in cities around the world, |
| we need to think about how we're going to organise our report. |
| Right. |
| I think we should start by talking about the benefits. |
| I mean it's great that so many cities have introduced these schemes |
| where anyone can pick up a bike from dozens of different locations |
| and hire it for a few hours. |
| It makes riding a bike very convenient for people. |
| Yes, but the costs can add up |
| and that puts people on low incomes off in some places. |
| I suppose so, |
| but if it means more people in general are cycling rather than driving, |
| then because they're increasing the amount of physical activity they do, |
| it's good for their health |
| OK. |
| But isn't that of less importance? |
| I mean, doesn't the impact of reduced emissions on air pollution |
| have a more significant effect on people's health? |
| Certainly, in some cities bike-sharing has made a big contribution to that. |
| And also helped to cut the number of cars on the road significantly. |
| Which is the main point. |
| Exactly. |
| But I'd say it's had less of an impact on noise pollution |
| because there are still loads of buses and lorries around. |
| Right. |
| Shall we quickly discuss the recommendations we're going to make? |
| In order to ensure bike-sharing schemes are successful? |
| Yes. |
| OK. |
| Well, while I think it's nice to have really state-of-the-art bikes with things like GPS, |
| I wouldn't say they're absolutely necessary. |
| But some technical things are really important - |
| like a fully functional app - |
| so people can make payments and book bikes easily. |
| Places which haven't invested in that have really struggled. |
| Good point... |
| Some people say there shouldn't be competing companies offering separate bike-sharing schemes, |
| but in some really big cities, competition's beneficial |
| and anyway one company might not be able to manage the whole thing. |
| Right. |
| Deciding how much to invest is a big question. |
| Cities which have opened loads of new bike lanes |
| at the same time as introducing bike-sharing schemes have generally been more successful - |
| but there are examples of successful schemes where this hasn't happened... |
| What does matter though - is having a big publicity campaign. |
| Definitely. |
| If people don't know how to use the scheme or don't understand its benefits, |
| they won't use it. |
| People need a lot of persuasion to stop using their cars. |
| Shall we look at some examples now? |
| And say what we think is good or bad about them. |
| I suppose we should start with Amsterdam |
| as this was one of the first cities to have a bike-sharing scheme. |
| Yes. |
| There was already a strong culture of cycling here. |
| In a way it's strange that there was such a demand for bike-sharing |
| because you'd have thought most people would have used their own bikes. |
| And yet it's one of the best-used schemes... |
| Dublin's an interesting example of a success story. |
| It must be because the public transport system's quite limited. |
| Not really - |
| there's no underground, but there are trams and a good bus network. |
| I'd say price has a lot to do with it. |
| It's one of the cheapest schemes in Europe to join. |
| But the buses are really slow - |
| anyway the weather certainly can't be a factor! |
| No - definitely not. |
| The London scheme's been quite successful |
| Yes - it's been a really good thing for the city. |
| The bikes are popular and the whole system is well maintained |
| but it isn't expanding quickly enough. |
| Basically, not enough's been spent on increasing the number of cycle lanes. |
| Hopefully that'll change. |
| Yes. |
| Now what about outside Europe? |
| Well bike-sharing schemes have taken off in places like Buenos Aires. |
| They built a huge network of cycle lanes to support the introduction of the scheme there, didn't they? |
| It attracted huge numbers of cyclists where previously there were hardly any. |
| An example of good planning. |
| Absolutely. |
| New York is a good example of how not to introduce a scheme. |
| When they launched it, |
| it was more than ten times the price of most other schemes. |
| More than it costs to take a taxi, crazy. |
| I think the organisers lacked vision and ambition there. |
| I think so too. |
| Sydney would be a good example to use. |
| I would have expected it to have grown pretty quickly here. |
| Yes. |
| I can't quite work out why it hasn't been an instant success like some of the others. |
| It's a shame really. |
| I know. |
| OK so now we've thought about... |