Fourth-generation BikeS: we know when it starts and what the charges are

The contract for the establishing of a new urban Bike_S rental service has been signed. The consortium of Orange Polska S.A. and ROOVEE S.A. has 80 days to deliver the first 400 vehicles.

On Wednesday, mailed copies of the contract signed by the Contractors on 30 September 2021 arrived at the headquarters of the Ordering Party, NiOL.

“The contract provides for delivery of the bicycles in three stages”, said Wojciech Jachim, Spokesperson of the Real Estate and Local Payments company. “400 bikes within 80 days of signing the contract, other 200 within 30 days of the date of acceptance of stage I, and the remaining 200 within 30 days of the date of acceptance of stage II”.

The stage of delivery also includes the creation of a rent-a-bike app.

The total cost of implementing the three stages is PLN 5.4 million.

The new BikeS is planned to be launched in March. The bikes will be available all year round.

“We expect to receive the first batch of bikes in December. The winter months will be devoted to the reception of subsequent deliveries,  software and payment system tests, and user registrations, while the launch of the new urban bike is scheduled on 1 March”, said Radosław Kanarek, President of NiOL.

Fourth-generation urbies

These will be fourth-generation bicycles equipped with GPS and security devices to prevent unauthorised hire. Stations with locks will become a thing of the past. They will be replaced by stop zones visible in the app. It will be possible to rent and return the bikes in the whole area of BikeS, but you will have to pay an additional PLN 10 for returning the bike outside the parking zone. If a bicycle is left outside the parking zone and returned to the parking zone, the user will receive an extra PLN 5 into their account.

The order provides for virtual stop zones which the operator will create temporarily for specific events generating increased traffic at a particular location, for example, during the Tall Ships Races.

The bike will have 26-inch diameter wheels, three gears, a torpedo-type rear brake, and a handlebar rack to carry items with a capacity of 4 - 6 litres and a weight of up to 10 kg. It will weigh approx. 18 kg.

Tender for new BikeS

Szczecin’s BikeS was launched in 2014 and extended in 2016. In its first years, it enjoyed huge popularity among Szczecin residents, recording half a million rentals every year.

Over time, due to intensive use, the number of bikes and the overall system efficiency began to decline. Therefore, in 2019 NiOL undertook efforts to obtain funds from the municipal budget to modernise the fleet. The money for fourth-generation BikeS was to be included in the budget of the City of Szczecin for 2020.

Unfortunately, Szczecin, like thousands of other Polish municipalities, had to revise its investment plans because the tax changes voted by the Sejm significantly reduced the receipts to municipal budgets. In Szczecin’s case the negative difference amounted to about PLN 90 million. There was not enough money for the new city bike, as for many other projects.

It was not until the municipal budget for 2021 that funds for the purchase of a new city bike system were allocated. In March 2021, NiOL announced a tender for fourth-generation BikeS with a bid opening date of 6 May. Nextbike Polska lodged a protest against the terms and conditions of the tender. Due to proceedings before the National Appeal Chamber, the opening of the bids was postponed several times. Finally, it took place on 23 July. The winning bid of the consortium of Orange Polska S.A and ROOVEE S.A exceeded the amount allocated by NiOL for the execution of the order by about PLN 0.5 million. In this situation, NiOL applied to the City Council for the second capital injection into the company.

Nextbike Polska did not submit its bid, although the terms and conditions of the tender had been adjusted to its expectations. The negative consequence of Nextbike Polska’s activity was tender procedure extension by almost 3 months.

Consequently, the new city bike will hit the streets of Szczecin on 1 March 2022, and not in 2021 as previously planned.

Fees for fourth-generation BikeS

Fees
Entry fee	PLN 20
Minimum amount for renting a bike	PLN 10
1 minute drive	PLN 0.06
1 minute stop	PLN 0.06
Monthly subscription (60 minutes per day)	PLN 18
Quarterly subscription (60 minutes per day)	PLN 45
Fee for each minute exceeding 60 minutes within the subscription	PLN 0.06
Leaving the bicycle outside the designated return/stop zone	PLN 10
Return of the bicycle left outside the designated return/stop zone to the return/stop zone /increase on the account balance	PLN 5
Return of the bicycle outside of Bike_S area	PLN 200
Fee for exceeding the maximum rental time (more than 12 hours)	PLN 100
Bicycle replacement cost	according to the repair estimate
Delivery and provision of bicycles on individual request /organized groups, excursions, city tours, offer for hotels/	at an individual rate