Bicycle sharing service gets off to a running start in Thailand

[webfact]

Bicycle sharing service gets off to a running start in Thailand

By   SIRIVISH TOOMGUM 
THE NATION 

 

 

CHINESE bike-sharing giant ofo will further expand its service to cover all major provinces in Thailand next year, especially in the smart cities, said Noppol Toochinda, the company’s general manager for Thailand.

Next year the company has targeted to have at least 1 million users and 100,000 bicycles available in Thailand, he added. It now has around 100,000 users.

 

Currently ofo has 6,500 bikes available nationwide, of which 200 are in Thammsat University Thaprachan, Bangkok; 3,500 in Thammsat University Rangsit, Pathum Thani; 1,500 in Phuket; 1,000 in Pattani; and 300 in Chiang Mai. 

 

He said that the government’s smart-city policy benefits ofo’s expansion plans, because those cities are improving e-services to help citizens access government and private-sector services. Also, the people in those cities are being encouraged to be smarter, both in their mindsets and discipline.

 

He said that after only three months after its debut in Thailand, ofo has had a very good reception from customers.

 

“Thailand’s ofo usage is among the highest in the world, so we are very satisfied with the results so far,” Noppol said.

 

“Using ofo is better than owning a bicycle yourself for several reasons. First, a consumer has much more convenience. Second, he/she doesn’t need to worry about maintenance. Third, ofo bikes are equipped with the best technology in the bicycle industry, which consumers can enjoy at a small cost. Last, buying a bicycle that you will use for only a few hours per day is not the best use of resources.” 

 

He said that Thai consumers were using ofo at a very high rate and the reception from customers in every location it has entered has been strong and positive. 

 

“Awareness of bike sharing works best if we have support from local governments, the private sector and the communities we operate in. Thus, we believe that our early approach to collaborate with these parties is surely the most efficient way to promote bike sharing in Thailand,” he added.

 

He said he was worried about local reports that shared bikes had been found dumped in canals in some provinces in Thailand. 

 

“But it is something that happens around the world, not only in Thailand. Vandalism will always be a case for bike sharing to face. However, the percentage of bikes being vandalised is very small – less than 1 per cent of the total number of bikes we have,” Noppol said. 

 

Soon the company will launch a new payment option for consumers to have easier access to ofo, he said.

 

Currently it offers free rides and zero deposit until end of 2017. The normal charge rate will be Bt5 per 30 minutes. Customers will need to download ofo’s wireless application to their mobile devices to register for the service, unlock the bikes and pay wirelessly by their debit or credit card.

 

He added that ofo was close to meeting its ambitious goal of covering 200 cities in 20 countries by the end of this year. Its service coverage expansion rate is extremely fast. For example, within three months in Thailand, ofo has already expanded to five cities. “That’s more than a city per month,” he said.

 

Founded in 2014, ofo has connected over 10 million bikes with 200 million global users in more than 180 cities across 17 countries. The platform generates 32 million transactions per day and has provided more than 4 billion rides in total. 

 

Users have accumulated a riding distance of over 1.2 billion kilometres. If cycling is replacing car use, that is a reduction of 84 million litres of fuel consumption and 265,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions from April to June this year alone.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/Corporate/30332003

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2017-11-20

[ezzra]

Good luck to them, in Australia those bikes where dumped everywhere

even it the Yarra river, hung on trees and clutters footpath and are

and eyesore all over the city, many are taken to be recycled, 

so much so that the city elders want those bikes gone,

knowing the locals, i bet that many of the bikes will find their

ways up country being sold in open markets sporting a new coat of paint

and even in neighboring countries being use to ferry good and

produce to the markets.....

[kkerry]

There are bikes dumped everywhere in Australian cities that run this scheme.

 

What really surprised me and makes me think it won't work well in Thailand is the Singapore experience. Singapore is generally a well ordered society but the amount of bikes abandoned in the streets is surprising. Travel on the above ground part of the East West MRT line, outside of the main tourist areas and look down. You will see countless abandoned bikes in the streets. People pay a deposit so I don't get why they dump them. In Singapore you also havet tourists riding them everywhere on footpaths.

 

If places like Singapore and Australia struggle then I can't see  it succeeding in Thailand. If bikes aren't dumped everywhere then I imagine they will end up in Cambodia. One of the companies behind bike share in China is now in financial trouble.

 

Shared-bicycles-are-trashing-Sydney-and-Melbourne-streets-and-rivers 

Edited November 19, 2017 by kkerry

[Somtamnication]

Minus over 100 bikes stolen in Phuket. Sad but these people do not appreciate anything.

[Bob12345]

Quote

Currently it offers free rides and zero deposit until end of 2017. The normal charge rate will be Bt5 per 30 minutes.

Ah, that explains why King Rama 9 park in Phuket is filled with school kids just coming out of school all using a bike to ride around the park (the school is located 10 meters from the park).

Wonder how many kids will keep doing that when they actually have to pay for it as they just use it for a joy ride instead of using it to commute.

My guess would be the usage will drop by 90% on the first day of 2018.

[yellowboat]

In China, they are starting to track them, but that technology is of course outlawed in Thailand.  Seen vast number of ofo and other bikes in China.  It is a thriving market. 

[phkauf]

Was recently in China and saw these bikes, along with those of other companies, everywhere. It seems to work very well, with high usage. Some bikes have solid rubber tires, no worry about flats, and they are self locking so no need to find a docking station.

If the Chinese could use this system and make it work, surely the Thais could. I welcome this as a great alternative to the motorcycle and tuk tuk guys.

[bluesofa]

5 hours ago, yellowboat said:

In China, they are starting to track them, but that technology is of course outlawed in Thailand.  Seen vast number of ofo and other bikes in China.  It is a thriving market. 

I would be interested to know more about this.

What technology do they use (in China?) to track them, and what is it that's outlawed in Thailand?

[yellowboat]

1 hour ago, bluesofa said:

I would be interested to know more about this.

What technology do they use (in China?) to track them, and what is it that's outlawed in Thailand?

To start, very little is legal in Thailand radio wise.  They do not follow ISM or much of the ITU.int .   It is the worse place in the world for innovation.   China allows LoRa and similar SDR (software defined radios).  Cannot remember what China's option to LoRa is called, but they have one and the telcos all use it.  As enforcement in Thailand is lack luster, you could probably use such things with never ever getting noticed, but if you want to build a business, it is preferable to be legal. 

Edited November 20, 2017 by yellowboat

[tifino]

 

and the outcome...

 

[DrTuner]

After about 3-4 days 99% of them have been thrashed and discarded in some khlong. Thais don't care about any shared resources.

[bluesofa]

38 minutes ago, yellowboat said:

To start, very little is legal in Thailand radio wise.  They do not follow ISM or much of the ITU.int .   It is the worse place in the world for innovation.   China allows LoRa and similar SDR (software defined radios).  Cannot remember what China's option to LoRa is called, but they have one and the telcos all use it.  As enforcement in Thailand is lack luster, you could probably use such things with never ever getting noticed, but if you want to build a business, it is preferable to be legal. 

Thanks for the details.

 

I had to look up LoRa as I hadn't heard of it before. One definition said Low Range, another said Long Range. I'd guess Low Range would be enough, if it was set up on a per bike rental station basis.

 

I'd just assumed it was going to be GPS tracking, although I'd think that would be too expensive on a per-bicycle basis, plus it would be more power hungry than a Low Range system?

[tominbkk]

They mention that the bike system works well in 'Smart Cities' so they would focus there first in Thailand.  

 

What is a smart city and where is one in Thailand?

[yellowboat]

55 minutes ago, bluesofa said:

Thanks for the details.

 

I had to look up LoRa as I hadn't heard of it before. One definition said Low Range, another said Long Range. I'd guess Low Range would be enough, if it was set up on a per bike rental station basis.

 

I'd just assumed it was going to be GPS tracking, although I'd think that would be too expensive on a per-bicycle basis, plus it would be more power hungry than a Low Range system?

http://diydrones.com/profiles/blogs/433mhz-super-long-distance-fhss-lora-wireless-data-modem-with-usb .   

 

GPS's are just receivers.  They need to be combined with a transmitter.  LoRa is low cost, low power and long range.  LoRa is seriously cheap given it can transmit up to 15km line of sight and 2km in the city.  GPS's drop in price every day too.  Thailand does not embrace these things, so people cannot enjoy them.  New smart phones will have LoRa one day.  It is cheaper to use for sending and receiving text messages. 

[yellowboat]

8 minutes ago, tominbkk said:

They mention that the bike system works well in 'Smart Cities' so they would focus there first in Thailand.  

 

What is a smart city and where is one in Thailand?

There isn't one.  To be smart, you must embrace knowledge and nurture creativity.   Does that sound like anywhere in Thailand ?

[tominbkk]

1 minute ago, yellowboat said:

There isn't one.  To be smart, you must embrace knowledge and nurture creativity.   Does that sound like anywhere in Thailand ?

I work in the coaching field, before in education.  Coaching is all about embracing knowledge, and challenging yourself to be more creative and aware.   In general this is not emphasized in Thailand's school systems or offices.  But many companies recognize they need it now if they want to compete regionally or internationally.

[observer90210]

When the rental program works, it is fine....but how many white collars would like to arrive at work the morning or for a business meeting all in sweat by commuting in the heat ? I

 

Don't mean to be a snob, not at all....but such a scheme would perhaps entertain the blue collar commuters or those not needing to arrive at a workplace fresh and relaxed ?

Edited November 20, 2017 by observer90210

[tifino]

 

combine the terms:

 

sharing

 

running

 

bike