Micro-mobility industry is all about a range of small, lightweight vehicles that operate at speeds below 20 mph and are handled by users personally. The most common types of micro-mobility vehicles are electric bikes and scooters. With the growth of sustainable transportation, as well as the overpopulation of major cities, which causes high amounts of traffic, many people started to opt for bike sharing and scooter sharing services. Generally speaking, bike sharing companies, like ANIV, give people the opportunity to rent electric bikes or scooters for a particular amount of time, and travel easily in the city, without the issue of getting stuck in traffic for hours. However, no matter the benefits that the micro mobility industry offers to both people and the cities, there are still some debates as to whether the industry should be owned and controlled by the city government or the private sector. In the long run, for better efficiency, it is more beneficial for the city to take control of the industry. Below are the reasons why.
First of all, in terms of the laws and regulations, private bike sharing and scooter sharing companies cannot take full responsibility and control of the whole industry. Besides the company licenses, there are many other aspects of the bike sharing system that need to be regulated. For example, the speed at which scooters or e-bikes can be operated.
Secondly, there are many uncontrollable aspects to the industry as well that cannot be handled by electric bike and electric scooter sharing companies. For example, weather conditions are a major disruptor of the micro mobility industry. No matter the number of precautions that the top bike sharing companies, like ANIV, undertake, such as making sure that the fleet is managed and any possible disruption is avoided through the integration of AI technology, there is still a need for better control of the whole bike sharing industry.
Lastly, the control of the bike sharing and electric scooter sharing market by the city brings a lot of benefits for local businesses too. Usually, bike sharing services are mostly used by tourists for faster and more convenient transportation. However, with the development of bike sharing companies and the general control of the laws and regulations by the city, many local businesses, such as restaurants and hotels can potentially benefit from the industry too. More particularly, hotels could cooperate with a bike sharing company, like ANIV, to help their guests move around the city with ease. And with the company’s operations being regulated by the city, hotels would feel more trust and confidence toward this type of cooperation.
After looking at the benefits of the micro mobility industry being owned and regulated by the city, let’s now dive deeper into the bike sharing system and the electric scooter sharing market.
Bike Sharing System: General Overview
Before getting into the benefits and the current trends of electric bike sharing, let’s look at the practicality of electric bikes and understand whether they are really the vehicles that could replace cars for shorter-length trips.
Actually, electric bikes can be great for both long and short-distance travel. All the user needs to do is book a bike through a bike sharing app and enjoy the ride.
The second practical advantage of electric bikes is the ease with which the user can ride and park the vehicle. Especially for people who know how to ride a bike, learning to drive an e-bike is not difficult at all. Additionally, the small space the vehicle takes up makes it very easy to park even in the most crowded parking lots.
Another benefit of electric bikes is their cost-effectiveness. Especially with the rising fuel prices, having a vehicle that is working through a chargeable motor can potentially save quite a lot of money.
Last but not least, electric bikes are beneficial for health as well. Driving a car and being stuck in the same posture, especially for a long amount of time, can cause some serious backaches and many other problems. On the other hand, riding an electric bike is like having a little workout session, as the e-bike is a pedal-assist vehicle.
Now let’s look into the difference between bike rental and bike sharing, as these two concepts are very often used interchangeably, however, they are not the same. The main point of difference is that bike rental is intended for the long run. Customers can rent bikes for hours, or even days. Whereas, bike sharing is intended to transport people from point A to point B, which usually takes less than 30 minutes. In this case, what are the benefits of bike sharing in comparison with bike rentals? Bike sharing services are an ideal option for a quick and efficient means of transportation, to avoid traffic and get to the desired destination in minutes. Additionally, bike sharing apps, like ANIV, make the whole process of renting a bike and picking it up from the closest location very easy and quick.
In terms of the current trends and circumstances that affect the present and future development of the bike sharing industry, global warming and the rising population of cities are two of the most important factors. Cars that work with fuel and gas have a negative impact on the amount of greenhouse gas emissions, which, in turn, affects the overall climate. On the other hand, electric bikes and scooters cause no such harm. Closely tied to this point, the rising population of cities tremendously affects the amount of traffic in the city, as many more people start driving cars. This consequently leads to even more greenhouse gas emissions and adverse effects on the environment. Therefore, opting for eco-friendly and fuel-efficient vehicles, such as electric bikes and scooters, is becoming more and more popular.
The Benefits of Bike Sharing Services
Before getting into the more practical benefits of the bike sharing system, let’s go back in time a little bit and look at the effects the pandemic had on the general growth of the electric bike and electric scooter sharing system. First of all, social distancing led to a decline in public transit use. However, not everyone can afford or would want to buy a car. As a result, alternative transportation means, such as electric bikes and scooters, grew in popularity. Additionally, COVID-19 reminded everyone how important it is to take care of our own health. As bike sharing involves physical exercise to operate the vehicle, this method of transport suddenly became preferable.
From the benefits of the bike sharing system, we would like to mention time, safety, cost, and eco-friendliness. Regarding the benefit of time, traffic is one of the major issues that people who drive cars, or use public transportation face daily, especially in big cities. With the convenience of renting a bike or a scooter in a matter of seconds and picking it up from the nearest spot, bike sharing apps, namely ANIV, have made people’s lives much easier. When it comes to safety, bike sharing is beneficial not only in terms of social distancing but also for speed restrictions, which do not allow the vehicle to go too fast and potentially cause an accident. Lastly, electric bikes and scooters do not harm the environment as they operate through electricity.
Furthermore, bike sharing services are beneficial not only for people but also for local businesses. Previously we mentioned the possible collaboration between a restaurant and a bike sharing company. However, there are some successful examples of hotel chains taking advantage of the bike sharing system as well. For example, The Chatwal in New York is a luxury hotel located in the heart of Manhattan. The hotel is located in a tourist hotspot, which is great but, at times, too busy to travel around. Chatwal offers bike sharing services to its guests for easier and faster access to transportation, which, in turn, is an added benefit to the hotel’s overall image and brand name.
What is an Electric Scooter?
When talking about the micro mobility industry, it is impossible to skip electric scooters. An electric scooter is a stand-up scooter with an electric motor. In 2018, the electric scooter sharing market was unveiled and it has been experiencing annual growth since then. In fact, according to the Grand View Research analysis, the overall electric scooter sharing market is expected to grow to $41.98 billion by 2030. Like electric bikes, electric scooters are also very convenient, eco-friendly, cost-efficient, and time-saving. That is why the rise in demand for this transportation mode is expected to increase.
Before getting into the benefits of electric scooter sharing, let’s look at some of the technical details of this vehicle. As electric scooters are relatively new, some top scooter sharing companies, such as ANIV, share general tips as to how to take care of the scooter so it serves longer. The first piece of advice is to turn the scooter off before charging. Secondly, it is important to make sure that the device is not stored in a wet place. Furthermore, while charging, the scooter should be stored in a cool environment. This advice is very practical and useful if you own your own scooter. Otherwise, an e-scooter sharing app, like ANIV, would be a much preferable option in terms of fast and hassle-free transportation.
Electric Scooter Sharing Market
Some of the statistics on electric scooter sharing show that free-floating scooters accounted for 95.5% of the overall scooter sharing market in 2021. Free-floating scooters can be rented from any location that is convenient for the user. This eliminates the need to pick the e-scooter up and leave it in a specific location. These types of scooters are being intensively integrated into the operations of the top scooter sharing apps, as ANIV.
As a final note, we would like to mention another opportunity that ANIV provides to its users. Besides the ability to rent e-bikes and scooters, it is also possible to build your own bike sharing or scooter sharing company through the ANIV platform. More precisely, the platform gives the opportunity to customize the business page according to the branding elements of your company, using all of the features and tools which are available once registered. Furthermore, the company dashboard is completely customizable and can be adjusted to the specific goals and objectives of the scooter sharing app that the user wants to launch. To learn more about the ways you could benefit from using ANIV, contact us through visiting our website.
