Bicycle sharing in loss, Corpn allows ad on cycles at stations

According to a Corporation council resolution, the service provider (SmartBike) has declared that they spent Rs 17.68 crore as capital expenditure and Rs 2.75 crore for operating expenses. However, the revenue collected between February 2019 to February 2021 was Rs 21.57 Lakh only.

Following the huge loss, the service provider requested the civic body to allow advertisements in the back panels of the cycle stations to generate revenue. “It is further mentioned that the service provider is facing heavy financial strain fuelled by large capital investment. The pandemic has also led to a drop in daily rentals and collection,” the resolution stated.

Apart from the permission for advertisements at the cycle stations, the service provider also demanded a licence fee waiver. Following the request, the civic body has decided to permit the service provider to use the space in the back panel of cycle stations for advertisement for the project period till February 2026.

Presently, 89 cycle stations have been commissioned and more than 950 cycles have been deployed for public use. More than 41,000 users have registered in the cycle sharing mobile application and around 2,48,000 rides have been completed. Various kinds of cycles such as shaft-driven bicycles and electric bicycles (e-Bikes) are deployed.

Currently, the service provider charges Rs 5.50 per hour for eco and shaft-driven bicycles and Rs 9.90 for every additional half an hour. For electric bicycles, the service provider charges Rs 10 for the first 10 minutes and Re 1 per minute thereon.

The charges are excluding GST. The civic body has allowed the service provider to increase the charges by 10 per cent annually.