What is a Bike Sharing System?
Bike-Sharing (or public bikes) Systems are electronic, automated systems that cater for short-term bicycle rentals.

What is the minimum and what the ideal number of Stations and Bicycles for my city?
There is no rule of thumb for this. The expected demand depends on the population, the climate, the cycling culture of the city, the age and educational profile of its population and on a series of other factors. What’s for sure is that for a System to be functional, it requires a minimum number of Stations and Bicycles. Cyclopolis is at your disposal to estimate for free the appropriate size of your System.

Who will run and maintain the System?
Experience shows that successful systems are run and maintained by a specialized entity. For many reasons we wouldn't recommended the operation of the System solely by the Municipal Authorities. However, the Municipality can undertake certain services related to the operation.

What it is the optimal pricing policy?
There is no straight-forward answer to this question. There must surely be charges to the user so as to discourage the long hold or the theft of bicycles. In most Systems the first half hour is free, with incremental charges for longer rides (as a “penalty” for not returning the bike soon enough for other users to ride).

What if there's no available bicycle in the Station?
Chances are that a bicycle will soon be there. If, however, after a short wait no bicycle is still there, the user can dial the special phone service and the operator will inform the user when there will be bikes available or the nearest Station where she can find one.

What if there is no empty place in a Station for a bicycle to leave in?
Chances are that some place will soon be free. If the user can’t wait, she can inform the System and be given an extra free 5-10 minutes so as to reach the shortest next Station with available parking space. However, this case is exceptional, since the entity operating and maintaining the System is informed by alerts every time there is limited availability of either bikes or parking spaces. In this case, there commence the process of redistribution of bikes between Stations, which ensures the availability of both bicycles and parking spaces.

What does it take for a System to succeed?
Fortunately, the international experience is henceforth quite rich and offers bright examples. Cyclopolis is not simply a supplier of Bike-Sharing Systems. We provide Systems with integrated consulting services that guarantee their success.
In any case, if we had to choose a unique (the most important) success factor, it would be the acceptance of the System by the community. Actually, all actions of planning, implementation, operation and maintenance are designed so as to give the optimal user experience and, thus, make the community feel that the System is theirs. Consequently, its protection and proper operation is safeguarded by its users.

Can the System be economically self-sustainable?
In general, Bike-Sharing Systems are provided by an authority to its community in the form of a pubic service. Experience shows that they are rarely self sustainable. Obviously, the economic effectiveness of each System depends on the demand for its services as well as its pricing policy. Cyclopolis provides with forecasting models of the revenue and operating expenses of your System to ensure effective economic and financial planning.