Not going too well, is it, chaps? As the existing problems continue, the date for casual user access to the Mayor’s cycle hire scheme has been delayed, yet again, until the end of the year.
Kulveer Ranger, apparently, has been trying to put a brave face on it, hence the title of this post.
Two hire cycles were stolen from Waterloo yesterday as Serco attempted to cope with the continuing commuter surge. The system needs casual users to redistribute the bicycles in between the rush hours, but casual users aren’t yet permitted to use the scheme as Serco apparently:
faces major headaches making the Borisbike system work with credit cards (for casual users and tourists). First there’s the issue about the £150 deposit. Then there’s the potential problem about which bike is released from the docking station (a code will have to be punched in at the docking point holding the cycle).
Curious, as the London scheme has been imported wholesale [PDF] from Montreal. If you scroll down these photos you can see a BIXI cycle hire pay station:
A close-up of the pay station. You swipe your credit card, then the station prints out a small paper with a three digit code. You use the code to unlock a bike.
The software already exists, so why are Serco utterly unable to modify and implement it?
As these photos show, a visitor to Montreal found that docking station after docking station was full and saw no hire bikes in use, contrary to public claims for the BIXI scheme. This same visitor makes the very interesting observation:
“BIXI is not financially threatened, and at over 1 million riders in its inaugural year, it has a very solid ridership base to build on. “
Well, that is the claim of the City, but the City also has a vested interest in trying to sell their system around the world so who knows what is the truth?
They invested a LOT of money in creating that bicycle style, and would love for it to spread around the world. All I know is what I saw on two trips, and it did not look widely used to me. Sorry if I am doubtful, but in this particular case I do not believe everything I read…I was truly astounded that so few bikes were missing from the stations I saw every day
It would seem that the Montreal cycle hire system has not been without its faults, some of which mirror the experiences of users of the London scheme, such as overcharging and lack of docking spaces.
A commenter on the Montreal scheme makes an observation which could well be applied to our own Mayor:
Although it is a nice initiative in theory, I believe the real motivation for this project is not solely for ‘green’ reasons. I highly suspect that the Mayor saw an opportunity to give his administration a much needed boost to its PR, and make money in the process. Unlike some of the European models Bixi claims to be basing itself upon, it is anything but free for short trips.
Which reminds me that London taxpayers are still being denied evidence of the business case for the cycle hire scheme.
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I think we need a new law to require cyclists to wear a helmet.
Oh dear Boris. Your scheme is fucked.
Hmmm. One person on a thread says Biki is crap. A few more people says its good. But you only write up the former.
“Then there’s the potential problem about which bike is released from the docking station (a code will have to be punched in at the docking point holding the cycle).”
I call BS. No matter how incompetent we may think Serco/TfL are, there is surely no way that they would have installed thousands of bike docks without a numeric keypad, if this was going to be necessary.
I would have expected the scheme to operate in a similar way to Paris / Lyon etc, where the terminal displays the available bikes, you choose one, the terminal unlocks it, and you walk down and collect your bike (presumably, on the London scheme, indicated by the green light).
I *really* don’t understand what the CC issue is. Plenty of hoteliers / other cycle hire schemes are well acquianted with placing a hold for a certain amount of money on a card, and then releasing it at the end of the booking. I can understand that TfL want to get this part of the system right (otherwise they will have hundreds of people complaining about £150 being locked out of their account for a week, before it times out under merchant rules), but it’s not that difficult. Surely?
This is not really a Disaster because it is safer and more comfortable to hop onto a bus or take the underground. In addition to this you wont be breathing in dangeruos pollutants deep into your lungs. Boris Johnson’s disaster will actually do people some good. Lastly why be surprised that this scheme is now a disaster because anything
Boris Johnson gets involved with always becomes plaqued with problems. You Brits must just laugh it of and wait for the next Mayoral Election. The sooner the better you unfortunate Londoner’s.
We must be careful to split the hire scheme idea – which is great and the specific implementation of it here – which is poor.
I am very pleased to see the cycle hire scheme in action – well done Ken for starting this project even though you weren’t around to complete it.
Having used 2 other cycle schemes as a tourist – Brussels and Toulouse – I could not see the problems which TFL are claiming we would have here. I just swiped my card and off I went, no registration and no problems.
I have said before the scheme started that the scheme makes the fatal mistake of being a ‘closed system’ – i.e. when all the bikes are at home, there are no spaces for new arrivals – this means you need someone to hire a bike from your destination before you can park it there.
Had the bikes been supplied with locks then this could have been different. Now I wonder which muppet at city hall made that decision?
The full stations that the visitor to Montreal saw do not indicate that the bikes are not used: on the contrary, it means that there is high demand for docking stations in this particular area. Typical phenomenon: docking stations in the city centre are full during business hours, and then become empty until the following morning.
I expect you’re right about the full Montreal docking stations, Mark. However, it’s not a very efficient use of transport funds if the bikes are only used once in the morning and once in the evening for a return journey, spending most of the day idle.
I have been an everyday user of the scheme; I suspect like may things that are new – especially around glitches you rarely hear from the satisfied and silent majority It works extremely well, its a great scheme! Well done to all that had the balls to see it through
. If I give one naysaying, non user who would love to the scheme a failure a millisecond of dissapointment in writing this, then it was 3 mins well spent on my part!.
@Mark Lee
Re: process for casual cycle hire access. Someone’s incompetent somewhere. Either there’s still a great deal of infrastructure still to install or TfL have produced 10′s of thousands (possibly 100′s of thousands) of guides with incorrect instructions in them.
http://northofthethames.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/img_0106.jpg
The scheme is a total, complete, unmitigated nightmare. I have been an annual member since January and attempt to use the scheme daily to go to and from work. However, one time out of three there is a “software malfunction” and I am unable to remove a cycle. This has made me late for work on numerous occasions. My current situation is a total nightmare, I had lost a key and have been waiting for more than a week for a replacement, however, in that time my old key has been found so I asked them to cancel the new key and re-activate the old… they said they have. Nevertheless, it does not work and since Monday (it is Wednesday) I have tried to phone the cycle hire people nine times… and have only been able to get through to the so-called “help desk” who are entirely unable to help because they cannot activate keys or manage user accounts. I am furious, fed up, disappointed, and feel cheated.