Guide to new Gold Coast bike share launching with Mobike, Transit Australia Group
THE Gold Coast’s bikeshare scheme will launch tomorrow. Here’s how it will work, what it will cost and how operators hope to avoid the problems other cities have encountered with bike dumping.
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OPERATORS of the Gold Coast’s new bikeshare scheme hope a world first “hybrid dockless” system will prevent the cycles from being piled up on beaches, in rivers and up trees the way they have in other cities.
The Coast’s council-initiated bikeshare rollout launches tomorrow with 150 of the distinctive silver and orange Mobike cycles, ramping quickly up to 300 by the weekend and up to 2000 in time for the Commonwealth Games.
The partnership is between Burleigh-based bus company Transit Australia Group and the world’s largest bike share operator Mobike, and will operate through a subsidiary of TAG dubbed TAG mobility.
The group will introduce the GPS-tracked bikes in Surfers Paradise, Broadbeach and Southport before spreading them further across the Gold Coast in line with demand.
Users can book their bikes via the Mobike app and unlock them using a QR code with two crews monitoring the condition of bikes, which will be located and redistributed to high-demand areas by two crews every day.
Two models of bike will be released — a single-speed version and a lighter three-speed model — and users will be able to ride for as little as $2.50 per trip.
Bright orange helmets will be required under the law and provided with the bikes at no extra cost.
While similar schemes in Sydney, Melbourne and overseas ask users to park the bikes somewhere `responsible’ when finished, the Gold Coast scheme will encourage riders to leave them at five initially-nominated bike hubs, and reward them with credits for doing so.
TAG Mobility has also partnered with non-profit group Good Cycles and will seek out long-term unemployed people to join the staff.
Vans will collect bikes from undesirable areas daily, repairing those that need it — although they are robust and generate enough power through dynamos and solar to operate their electronic systems.
The group hopes the social aspect of the scheme, as well as the locally-based team, would create community pride and ownership in the program, which could take hundreds of cars off the roads.
General manager Derek Mollison said the Gold Coast scheme was different than other cities’ failed programs as it was integrated with existing public transport and was developed alongside the council.
“The great thing about a dockless system is the flexibility, that you can drop them off anywhere,” he said.
“But one of the beauties of this hybrid model is that it makes it easier for users to pick them up from a convenient location.
“We are hoping Gold Coasters will talk a bit of pride and ownership in them — there’s a real part we can play in terms of alleviating congestion.”
The group will offer a free one-day trial and then offer three months for $5 for users who sign up this month, taking in the duration of the Commonwealth Games.
After that, regular users can get a monthly pass for $30, or a casual ride for $2.50 per trip.
How it works
* Download the Mobike app to locate the nearest bicycle
* Scan the code to unlock it and the helmet
* Ride it to your destination and park it responsibly
* Put the helmet back in the bike lock, lock the bike using the manual switch
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