A bicycle of bike-lending service Ubike is seen on a road in Shanghai, China, 20 December 2016. With China experiencing a booming sharing-economy, U
Imaginechina Limited / Alamy Stock Photo
Image ID: W83J8R
A bicycle of bike-lending service Ubike is seen on a road in Shanghai, China, 20 December 2016. With China experiencing a booming sharing-economy, Ubike, a newcomer among bike-sharing services, said it's going to distribute 100,000 to 200,000 bikes in Shanghai early next year and enlarge its business to 52 cities across the country. Share-bikes are designed mainly for white-collar workers who need to ride for a kilometer or two before getting on a subway heading to the office or home. Yu Yi from Ubike said Shanghai currently has 150,000 to 200,000 share-bikes, while the city's market capacity is one million. That is why the company is moving into the market, despite fierce competition from established players like Mobike and Ofo bike. Yu said Ubike plans to cooperate with Shanghai bike producer Forever, and offer 2.8 million bikes in 2017, mainly for Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and other cities within the Yangtze River delta and the Pearl River delta. Ubike now has two products with adjustable seat heights able to suit people 1.45 to 1.9 meters tall. Riders must download a smartphone app and use it to scan a QR code to unlock the bike. Yu said a decision on standards fees for the bike service in Shanghai has not been made, but will charge according to the current industry level. Ofo bike charges users 1 yuan, or 14 US cents for each ride. However, China at present does not have specific regulations on the products and services share-bike companies provide. There are no clear standards to measure whether a company is qualified, when to put a bike into maintenance, who should be the target user, etc.
