App-based bicycles made a comeback in New Town on Tuesday.
A cycle-sharing system had become popular in the township but the aggregator had to stop the service a year back because many users were not returning the cycles or dumping them in canals.
The new cycles, of which 100 have landed in New Town, can be picked up by commuters from as many as 21 docking stations, an official of the New Town Kolkata Development Authority (NKDA) said.
On Tuesday, urban development and municipal affairs minister Firhad Hakim inaugurated a docking station near the base of Kolkata Gate. It is one of the five stations operational — in front of the New Town bus stand, near the Reliance Fresh outlet, outside Axis Mall, near Novotel and off Kolkata Gate.
Hakim, taking a cue from the earlier misuse of bikes, urged residents to protest if they saw the cycles being dumped or taken away. “Cycling is the greenest form of transport. And unlike in Calcutta, where we could not find space for cycling bays, New Town has existing infrastructure (for cyclists) and we want to promote it,” the minister said.
The NKDA has partnered with Chartered Bike, an Ahmedabad-based company, to launch the service.
The business model, as well as the philosophy behind the bicycle renting scheme, is modelled on the ones followed by app-based bicycle sharing services in pedal-friendly cities like Paris, Copenhagen and Amsterdam.
A bicycle docking station inaugurated by minister Firhad Hakim on Tuesday.
A user in New Town has to download the “Chartered Bike” mobile app on a smartphone. A one-time registration fee of Rs 100 is charged and it is redeemable, said a spokesperson for the company.
To unlock a cycle one needs to scan the QR code on the fender. In case someone wants to stop somewhere - for example to buy groceries or vegetables - he/she has to click on the “parking” option on the app.
At the end of the ride, the rider needs to choose the “end ride” option, after which the payment can be made through mobile wallets as well as the debit or credit cards. The cycle has to be returned to any of the docking stations after the ride.
As an introductory offer, the first half hour of the ride will be free. From the 31st to the 60th minute, the rider will be charged Rs 5.90. For the next 30 minutes, one has to shell out Rs 11.80 and thereafter, Rs 17.70 every hour.
NKDA chairman Debashis Sen said 400 battery-powered cycles were on their way. Bidhannagar police commissioner Mukesh said: “We will not allow bicycles on flyovers.”