Vélib' in Paris

Velib:
Means Vélo Liberté (bicycle liberty)

Vision:
1. Cut 40% cars by 2020
2. Take away car space for other means of transportation

The System:
1. Affordable (1 EUR/day or 29 EUR/year subscription fee)
2. First 30 mins free (to encourage short trips)
3. 20,000 bikes, 1,400 bikes stations, 50,000-100,000 riders/day
4. Accessible. Riders always less than 300 yards from a station
5. Stations near other transporation hubs
6. Operates 24/7

Methodology:
1. Divided Paris into blocks of 400SM
2. Analyzed population, job density, businesses and potential demands
3. Initial success would be critical to succeed in the future

Finance:
Advertising Agency JC Decaux provides bikes, infrastructure and maintenance for 10 years. In return, it gets advertising board locations from the city.

Maintenance:
1. Bike locations and maintenance tracked by central computer
2. Trucks redistribute bikes to replenish stations
3. A barge as floating repair shop on the Seine, with bike storage along the river bank for bike pick-ups and drop-offs.
4. Additional 15 mins free if bikes are dropped off at rare locations e.g. hill tops, and 15 mins free extra if a station doesn't have a bike, and a screen shows available bikes in the next station

Problems:
1. Vandalism
2. Rider number drops when rains
3. Stolen bikes

Social Benefits:
1. Parisians socialize around stations. Stations are #1 pick-up point for singles
2. Biking became fashionable, and bike ownership increased 50%
3. Streets are accessible to everyone. Flourish activities such as Friday night rollerblading

Spin-off:
Autolib'. An electric car sharing program in operation by the end of 2009



Sources:
1. The webcast of "Paris: Vélo Liberté" at http://www.e2-series.com/
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V%C3%A9lib%27