ZappaWheels
  • Home
  • Gallery
  • Blog
  • Support
  • Community
    • Submit Your Story
  • Advice
  • Bike Shops
  • About
  • Home
  • Gallery
  • Blog
  • Support
  • Community
    • Submit Your Story
  • Advice
  • Bike Shops
  • About
Search


​Discover the joy of bike commuting
​

A Future of Personalized Transportation.

10/5/2015

0 Comments

 
Bike Share Conference Chicago
Last week I had the opportunity to attend the Shared .Use Mobility Conference in Chicago. Dubbed Move Together, over 400 attendees from 31 states and 6 countries participated, including private companies, non-profits, government agencies and interested individuals. The conference opened with SUMC CEO, Sharon Feigon outlining a vision of getting to work, or wherever you need to go, without owning a car. She also laid out a challenge of eliminating ownership of 1,000,000 private cars with 5 years through shared mobility.  

Dozens of speakers shared updates on the growth and diversity of ride-share, bike-share, and car-share programs across the U.S. Many innovative product ideas were presented including integrated bike locks,
recyclable bicycle helmets, bike dashboards that tell you which way to turn, and all sorts of ride-sharing apps. 
Picture
In one of the more visionary sessions, former head of the NYC Transit Authority, and now CEO of Motivate, Jay Walder spoke to a future where the word "mass" is taken out of transit, and replaced by personalized transportation that fits an individual's life. He pointed to bike sharing as a central part of this evolution, allowing people to go where and when they want, unbound by tracks and train schedules.

​He cited just the previous week 52,000 bike share trips occurred in a single day in New York City; an average of every bike being used 8 times/day!


Picture
PBSC Product Analyst Suzelle Faubert demonstrates the SmartHalo feature.
bike map on phone
The bike and phone connect via bluetooth. The route map is displayed on the phone.
Smart Bike
The bike dashboard lights up when a turn is approaching giving the rider a visual signal.
One of the noteworthy product innovations included a smarthalo dashboard mounted on shared bike produced by PBSC Urban Solutions. The system is connected to the GPS in  the rider's smartphone and provides a visual indicator on which way to turn during a bike ride.

Bike Share Lock
Social Bicycles from Brooklyn, New York showcase a shared use bike that had a lock integrated into the bike rack. ​It offers a more convenient approach for locking a bike. 

Bike share riders remove the U-lock from its holster and push it into the side of the rack to secure and immobilize the bike. To release the lock, users type in a code on the keypad on the rack. The service can also be triggered by a smartcard like the Ventra ride card in Chicago. 


Executive Director of LA Bike Trains, Nona Varnado, shared her personal frustration over the difficulty of bike commuting in Los Angeles. This led her to start a ride sharing service for bike commuters. Riders have the ability to meet up with other commuters and ride together on popular commuting routes. They are led by an experienced conductor who knows the route and can help with any problems on the commute. The service has led to individuals bike commuting that would never have considered it before. 

What a neat way to engage more bike commuters!
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Our Mission 

    To help bike commuters ride better, smarter, safer.... and of course have fun!

    Picture
    Stay current with articles and advice
    Subscribe

    Categories

    All
    Advocacy
    Bicycle Economy
    Bike Philosophy
    Bike Sharing
    Bike Shops
    Cold Weather Riding
    Community
    Fun Stuff
    Practical Advice
    Product Reviews
    Safety
    Security
    Stories
    Sustainability

    Take the
    ​Rider Survey

    Archives

    February 2021
    June 2020
    February 2019
    April 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015

Proudly powered by Weebly
Photos used under Creative Commons from Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com, Richard Masoner / Cyclelicious, IQRemix, VeloBusDriver, Maria Eklind, kasio69
  • Home
  • Gallery
  • Blog
  • Support
  • Community
    • Submit Your Story
  • Advice
  • Bike Shops
  • About