Imagine walking outside and grabbing the first bicycle you see, and riding away. Then, once you reach your destination, simply abandoning it by the side of the road.
This might sound like a really benign version of Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto series. But in China, it’s a reality – and it’s totally legal (and very cheap), thanks to a host of new bike-sharing companies, led by Ofo.
And now, Ofo is gearing up to bring their business to Seattle.
Ofo’s bike-sharing model presents a unique solution to what city planners call the “last mile problem.” For example, even if your town has great trains and lots of bike docks, the process of actually getting from the train station or the bike dock to your house – that “last mile” – makes you not want to use public transportation at all.
That’s where Ofo sees an opportunity. But not everything is going as smoothly as they’ve hoped, especially now that they’re trying to expand into the U.S. VICE News traveled to Beijing to see how Ofo went from a tiny campus startup to a billion dollar valuation in under one year.
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Has OFO made arrangements in USA City to recover their bicycle if it starts dumping bicycle on US City Streets? I personal think if this becomes a problem, consider the bicycle abandon and use !!!!!!!
Is this bike for sale or just for renting?
lairse.com is also a good website for bikesharing, check it out!
In the UK they were drummed out of most if not all major cities and good riddance too!
Many were stolen, others were vandalised.
Surely you can afford to BUY your own bike?
A year later in San Diego California and these OFO Bikes are Homeless people's mode of transportation, Thank You again for supporting our Non working class and giving them Hope for a better Free future. Awesome!
Every summer i buy a new bike cause assh*** keep stealing
Learn more about Ofo’s failed business model and its prospects overseas
https://www.unicornanalytics.net/post/ofo-the-yellow-bike
ban them before they get there. its a massive problem, liter the streets and local parks, beaches etc…bam them entering
I need boy friend
I need boy friend
Sadly, I am seeing variants of OFO bikes being sold here without locks at local bike shops. Are they still doing good?
I hope these never ruin NYC like revel has already
How is this like bike theft exactly?…
Just make good parking = small discount and people will park them better
Way more bikes out there than nessicarry. You know when a bike breaks, you can fix it, right? No need to get a new bike just because it has a flat tire.
How does the guy interviewing the COO wash his head? 🤔
they are also a problem in singapore that caused them to ceased
Why is people selling these on fb marketplace for 100 quid
That would never fly in Japan. Oh no the police will just impound them
Without a docking system, bikes get left everywhere. Right now, scooters in California cities are left on both private and public property, including sidewalks. The more popular the destination, the bigger the problem. I don't see why people can't legally take them as abandoned property and either smash them or reengineer them, unless the e-scooter companies have agreements with local government.