12 Aug 2010
Great News about Dublinbikes
Firstly, for an indication of the interest, The London share bikes are generating, check our this forum under the name of Boris Bikes
What you find below is such an important letter, that I rush to post it in it’s entirety. it’s written by someone high up with inside knowledge of what’s happening with Dublinbikes, the bike share scheme of that city.
Milo Hurley, a rather mad Irish Brompton rider living in South Australia, managed to get this letter written to him, and passed it onto us with permission to publish
Here’s Milo, framed by his beloved Brompton in a state of fold.
Why it is so important? because the Dublin scheme is about the same size as that of Melbourne, Melbourne Bike Share, which I’ve dubbed, in the hopes of making it more agreeable, the Mixi share scheme
Maybe the letter will be useful to Mixi’s parents. It’s published in that hope. Its all about Dublinbikes.
Dear M,
Glad to hear from you and I should be able to help you with some answers to your questions.
I have to say I was rather shocked to hear of the low uptake of the Melbourne bikes. I can’t believe that there are less than 70 trips per day.
At the moment in Dublin we are getting daily trips of close to 5,000 from our 450 bikes. This makes us one of the most successful schemes in Europe.
Our expectation was to sign up 2,000 members in our first year. In our first 11 months we have signed up 37,000 members (about 25,000 annual subscriptions and 12,000 three-day memberships.)
The gardai (police) have confirmed that there have been no serious accidents with the bikes and there has been remarkably little vandalism. Two bikes were stolen up to now, but we recovered both bikes.
Research has shown that over 40% of users of the scheme have never or rarely cycled in the city centre before the bike scheme was launched. 60% use the bikes in conjunction with public transport.
Why have we been so successful? There is no research published that can give us exact answers but there are a number of factors that I would point to.
I think our pricing structure has been a major success. We charge €10 for an annual membership card. This is such good value for money, that people are prepared to give it a go. A three-day membership is only €2. Members can travel for 30 minutes for free. After that fees kick in.
Dublin has become a safer place to cycle in over the last 10 years. In 2007 we banned large trucks from the city centre. Any vehicle with 5 axles or more has to go around the city on a motorway between 7am and 7pm.
We reduced the speed limit in the city centre to 30kph in February 2010. This has been very controversial but it gave a boost of confidence to cyclists.
While accident levels have decreased by up to 70% in the last 10 years, the numbers cycling started to rise about 5 years ago. The numbers cycling have gone up every year since 2004 and now there are 60% more cycling than there was five years ago.
There is NO mandatory helmet law. We learned that lesson from Australia. After the introduction of Dublin Bikes, there was some pressure to bring in compulsory helmets, but thankfully common sense prevailed.
Regards,
A.
Milo, who passed the letter on to me, along with some interesting further info, revealed that the helmet trap is well known globally. He writes.
“Dublin Bike Share learned their lesson from Australia, a place that almost destroyed commuter/utility cycling on its own turf, by seeking to ‘improve’ things for its citizens..by force of law.. under pain of swingeing fines.
The ‘Australian Effect’ is now established internationally as something which urban planners avoid at all costs, a counter-productive own-goal
Not only do Mandatory Helmet laws not work, they sabotage what they seek to improve. ”
I must get up to the Northern territory where I hear they’ve done away with compulsory helmets. Do did they manage that, I wonder since is supposedly undo-able in the south.
Dick Smith and Simon Nasht created some great TV last night, a doco on growth and population followed by a feisty Q and A on the ABC.
I’m hoping Dick might take an interest in bikes as transport. He’s a convert to sustainability and the most sustainable transport, apart from legs, is surely the bike.
I’ve sent them my film, Tony Abbott. Not the Man.
Great film, Mike.
The DublinBikes is about the closest we’re going to get to a control group for the Melbourne Bike Share.
It will be interesting to see how the Brisbane CityCycle goes when it starts up in October this year. JCDecaux is running the show as they are with DublinBikes, using the same hardware & bikes. The website layout is identical too!
http://www.citycycle.com.au
http://www.dublinbikes.ie
Interesting to note that you can forfeit a security deposit of $330 if you don’t return a bike or if you fail to comply with the terms and conditions. Guess what is at the top of the list of terms and conditions? Yep, you must wear a helmet.
I was going to sign up as an annual subscriber in support of this but I cannot do so knowing this.
Dr Paul Martin
August 16th, 2010 at 2:56 ampermalink
Mike,
Your film was great (as expected) but I must point out the slight disconnect in your commentary.
You tell us that Australia is the most obese country in the world (I’ll take your word for that) and you suggest that cycling will help everyone to lose weight and become more happy. I agree with all this, and who wouldn’t. But, then you go on to promote electric bikes.
If an elderly gentleman (who we are told has just had heart surgery) is able to ride up a hill then I would suggest that riding such a bike requires very little human energy. If the people of Amsterdam were to all ride electric bikes they would be much fatter. I suggest that electric bikes should be seen for what they really are – electric motorbikes.
There is a place for electric motorbikes, and that is with the cars, on the road.
Cycle lanes should be constructed for sit-up and ride cyclists, not racing bikes and definitely not motorised bikes of any sort.
Apart from that, keep up the good work,
Ross
Ross
August 16th, 2010 at 8:08 pmpermalink
Ross, the elderly gentlerman is me, and so I can credibly report that, since coming back to cycling via my elctric bike, I’ve lost about 10 kilos and am way more fit.
You should try an E bike. The motor only helps. One gets plenty of exercise, indeed way more than a regular bike because on uses the bike much more frequently and casually. You can see the long hill up to my place on: Commuting by Electric bike, yes you Can. (The sound has been removed by Youtube they did not like the song I used)
This long slow ride up Hillside rd. means that no one on this street uses a bike to go down to the shops, a convenient 1 km. away, no one that is, except me. I wouldn’t use it either if it wasn’t electric. It’s just too much of a struggle for me at least to get home.
As for the Dutch. they have one of the fastest uptakes of E bikes, they call them pedelecs, in Europe. A Gazelle E bike an Innergy, won bike of the year, against all bike types, last year. Dr. Paul Martin, who often comments on my blog or on my movies, rides an Innergy in Brisbane.
An astonishing 160,000 E bikes were purchased there last year compared with 10,000 here. Why? because they have killer head winds, and maybe because they carry a lot of stuff, including kids, and more than one quite often..
I”m convinced that the E bike is the way to bring back hundreds of thousands, even millions, of Australians to cycling as transport, the ride being so pleasant. The exercise aspect too, is so adjustable.
In the meantime, we should be grateful that 60 million Chinese ride these bikes, not having turned to cars….as yet.
Mike
Mike Rubbo
August 16th, 2010 at 10:18 pmpermalink
Ross,
I too ride an electric bike. Mine is a Gazelle Innergy and it is a bicycle, not an electric motorbike.
It conforms to the European EPAC (electrically pedal assisted cycle) standard which specifies, in particular:
- max power output of 250W
- cutoff speed for assistance at 25km/h
In essence it is a bicycle with an electric motor for assistance (which you can choose to not use at all if you wish). It is not a scooter/moped/motorcycle.
Since having this bike, the car has barely left the garage. It wins hands down, no matter the weather or terrain. My bike is a utility vehicle, situp with racks & mud/chain guards. It is a transport tool, not a recreational toy or piece of sporting equipment and I have done over 3000km in 8 months. It allows me to ride my bike to work (22km) without sweating profusely, yet I can still go up a 10% gradient at a steady 15km/h.
It is a perfect remedy for some of the biggest excuses around here (Brisbane) for not using a bicycle: heat, humidity & hills. While it doesn’t remove them from the equation it reduces them to manageable levels.
You should actually try riding one.
To do some maths:
Lance Armstrong can generate about 380W below his anaerobic threshold (ie. if he keeps breathing he can keep going). An average fit male like me could probably manage 150W at the crank. Add a 250W motor and you can see the benefit.
The motor only makes a difference on hills and into headwinds.
We are waiting for the Federal Government to bring our standard up to (at least) the EU standard for e-bikes so we will see more choice here. They have some excellent e-bikes there.
Regards,
Paul
Dr Paul Martin
August 17th, 2010 at 1:20 pmpermalink
This is my machine
Dr Paul Martin
August 17th, 2010 at 1:24 pmpermalink
The e-bike has a market share of 10% in the Netherlands, and its 2009 sales saw a 30% increase from 2009, according to this article from the Dutch state broadcaster.
Branko Collin
August 18th, 2010 at 2:55 pmpermalink
Great news from Dublin. I used the information as part of a letter I wrote to the Age, and which they published today. I don’t think I can give you a link to the letters page, so will copy the text. It went:
“Bike share schemes have taken off in over 135 cities around the world, and by all reports are doing very well. In any city that values public health combined with a sustainable solution to transport and congestion problems, they would have to be a winner.
The first season in Montreal saw 3.5 million kilometres pedalled, without compulsory helmets and only five (non serious) accidents. After eleven months, again without helmets required, Dublin saw its modest 450 bikes used up to five thousand times in a day, again with no reported accidents of note. Latest start up was in London, promoted by their Lord Mayor, Boris Johnson, who commutes to work by bike, dressed in a suit and no helmet. The first day saw six thousand uses, and the numbers are rising.
Meanwhile in Melbourne, Bicycle Victoria supported a recent massive hike in fines for cyclists, including $146 for not wearing a helmet. Victoria police fine around twenty thousand cyclists a year for this heinous offence.
Melbourne bike share is launched with 400 bikes. The uptake is a miserable seventy uses on average each day. So spot the clever country.”
I will be interested to see if there is any response in the next few days.
Alan
August 19th, 2010 at 3:41 ampermalink
Mike , Paul,
The issues with electric bikes (as I see them):
1. They are not environmentally as “green” as a normal bicycle. The batteries need to be produced and then they need to be recharged. The power to recharge has to come from somewhere. How does your supplier generate the power?
2. The speed of the average commuter in Amsterdam/Copenhagen is slightly under 20 kmph (I have read this but can’t find the link to the research now so you may well be able to prove me wrong here). Anything that artificially increases the speed, even slightly, will have a detrimental affect on safety. Normal bikes are cheap and they are what most children will ride.
3. If the electric bike becomes widespread then the population comes to rely on their increased range and speed (just as we have with cars). The population then makes decisions re housing and employment locations based on their ability to use their electric bikes (just as we have with cars).
If the electric bike gets people out of their cars then that would be wonderful. I would rather everyone rode electric bikes than drove cars. However, I am one of those that believe that in the not too distant future the masses will be forced to leave their cars due to increased running costs. By simply swapping cars for electric bikes we will not solve all the problems (health/environmental) that we could solve if we stuck with normal good old fashioned bikes.
Sadly (for me anyway) I suspect that the electric bike will rule (just as the car does now). I hold out false hope for a world where our transportation does not involve damaging our environment and where we benefit from reduced healthcare (mental & physical) through the normal routine exercise associated with our daily lives. I look forward with much interest, as I guess you do, to the developments in Europe. I am picking an increase in the waistline of the average commuting Amsterdamer.
Keep up the great videos Mike.
Ross
Ross
August 21st, 2010 at 10:11 pmpermalink
Ross,
To address your points, as numbered:
1
True. While they are not as ‘green’ as a normal bicycle they are hardly environmental demons! The embodied energy in a bicycle is probably far more significant (steel manufacture, etc). My bicycle has a 250Wh Li-ion battery and with this I can travel 70km if I want assistance – I still have to pedal. Even if coal was used to charge the battery (I have 100% ‘green’ power…) this would produce 200g of CO2 (the amount that most cars produce after ONE kilometre of driving!).
Guess how much petrol it takes to hold 250Wh of energy? 25 millilitres! If your car could do 5 litres/100km, 25ml would allow you to drive a mere 500 metres!
The Lithium ion batteries are easily recycled at the end of their life.
The other point is that you don’t have to use the motor at all if you so desire. My bike is just like any other Dutch bike and is very easy to ride without any assistance.
2
Yes, the speed of an ‘average’ commuter is about 15km/h in Copenhagen and I’m sure Amsterdam commuters are the same. The assistance cuts out at 25km/h by regulation – barely much faster. These are not electric mopeds. They really only make a difference on hills and into headwinds. They also help on very hot & humid days when you can travel at 20km/h with the same effort as you would travelling at 5km/h on the flat. My bike also helps with the grocery shopping. I can take quite a load up steep hills which would be impossible without the assistance.
The ‘normal’ bikes for children you refer to that are ‘cheap’ may be what children ride here, but they are rubbish bikes. Have a look at what children ride in Europe (try brands such as Gazelle, Batavus, etc) and you’ll see that they are just smaller versions of the adult bikes with all the gear you need (mudguards, lights, racks, etc.). The electric assist bicycles are not for children and are not marketed for children. They are not ‘toys’… but then again, bicycles in general are not ‘toys’ in Europe.
3
They don’t go faster than many other bicycles out there. In fact, I am much slower on average than other commuters on my situp Dutch Gazelle bike. In terms of range, you can go as far as you like just like any other bicycle.
I can’t see how you could think electric bikes would worsen the urban sprawl that has resulted from our reliance on motor cars! They are, after all, just bicycles.
I think you’re confusing these bikes with some of the very dodgy electric mopeds in China which have vestigial ‘pedals’ to make them ‘bicycles’. The European EPAC bicycles are a very different breed.
Perhaps the electric bicycle will help get the unfit from their cars and, as they will get some gentle exercise, they may get to the point where they can just ride a standard bicycle.
Dr Paul Martin
August 23rd, 2010 at 3:11 ampermalink
Fabulous video Mike!
To Ross, Paul, and Mike. The confusion that I think a lot of people have about e-bikes is not without reason.
Here in Toronto, there is a small boom in “electric bikes”, but they aren’t anything like the electric bikes that Mike or Paul use. They are essential scooters, with motors that are 500W or less with a max speed of no more than 32km/h.
The Province of Ontario is classifying electric-assisted bicycles the same as they are classifying these large, bulky, electric scooters. So they have the right to use bike paths and bike lanes the same way bicycles do.
The problem with these – what I will call scooters – is that they are big, heavy, fast, and although they do have “pedals”, the pedals aren’t actually designed to be used. They are just there to fulfill the obligation by Ontario that e-bikes *must* be equipped with pedals.
Here is a photo posted by the government that shows both a real e-bike, and a scooter e-bike: http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/dandv/vehicle/emerging/e-bike-faq.shtml#a3
I actually saw a girl last week try to pedal one of these scooters, but the pedals were so far apart and back, she couldn’t even pedal if she tried. It looked like she was doing a gymnastics move with her legs pointing outward at a 45 degree angle.
I was in China a few months ago too, and they too had thousands upon thousands of these electric scooters. I think Ontario made a big mistake by putting these scooters into the same category as electric-assisted bicycles.
I think Paul and Mike’s electric-assisted bikes are a great idea – especially for the climate and terrain in Australia. Here in Toronto I don’t see a need for it, because it’s pretty flat here and not as hot and humid – aside from a few weeks in the summer.
Cheers!
James Schwartz / http://www.theurbancountry.com
James
August 23rd, 2010 at 8:20 pmpermalink
[...] Mike Rubbo’s site is a letter mentioning a comparison between the introduction of Melbourne Bike Share and [...]
CityCycle – Missing a Great Opportunity? | City Cycle
August 26th, 2010 at 6:39 pmpermalink
It never ceases to amaze me when I hear cyclists speaking out again electric bikes for reasons of health, environment and issues relating to mobility (don’t want to share their bike lane etc). Please take a dose of reality. You don’t have bike lanes in Australia, you have roads that cars and bikes use. it’s much better that the motorists get onto ebikes. Ebikes are much more sustainable than cars, using around about an hour’s worth of telly watching per day for electricity – save your preaching for the hordes watching TV if you’re actually concerned about the environment. As for health and the cycling utopia you describe – you may be aware there are very few people who cycle from cradle to grave in this country. Even in the Netherlands there are cars and motorbikes and ebikes are helping them stay on bikes.
maurice
August 28th, 2010 at 5:13 pmpermalink
Congratulations to Sue Abbott on the great news that a County Court judge, after investigating the evidence on helmet effectiveness and impacts, has agreed substantially with Sue on her stand and quashed her conviction, as result of her having a strongly held belief.
From the SMH
‘Judge Roy Ellis happily admitted his own doubts about the laws.
”Having read all the material, I think I would fall down on your side of the ledger,” the judge told Ms Abbott after she had spelt out her case against the laws that exist in few countries other than Australia and New Zealand.
”I frankly don’t think there is anything advantageous and there may well be a disadvantage in situations to have a helmet – and it seems to me that it’s one of those areas where it ought to be a matter of choice.” ‘
Peter Signorini
August 28th, 2010 at 10:55 pmpermalink
Good post on the Dublin Scheme.
I notice Australia is becoming famous around the world … for introducing the helmet law and showing the world was a mistake it can be.
If only we could learn from our mistake and move on….
Harvey
September 3rd, 2010 at 8:10 pmpermalink
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September 5th, 2010 at 8:01 pmpermalink
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