SINGAPORE — Bicycle-sharing company oBike has introduced a credit scoring system to deter errant users who park their bikes indiscriminately, a problem that has drawn growing attention on social media.
Explaining how the scoring system works at the official launch of oBike on Thursday (April 13), the company’s general manager Elgin Ee said every user will start with 100 points upon signing up for an account. Points will then be added or deducted based on a user’s behaviour.
For example, three points will be added to a user’s account for reporting an illegally parked bicycle. But up to 20 points will be deducted if the rider parks the bicycle at non-designated parking areas.
A user’s credit score will affect how much he or she pays for renting a bicycle. Currently, oBike users pay S$0.50 for every 15 minutes of usage.
But if a user’s credit score drops to between 60 to 79, the rental cost will rise to S$5 per 15 minutes. A user with less than 60 points will be charged S$50 per 15 minutes.
A user with zero points will not be able to use the service, though oBike said it will evaluate requests to reinstate a user’s account on a case by case basis.
Photo: oBike
oBike deployed their fleet of 1,000 bicycles in February, and said it is set to introduce “thousands more” in the coming months. About 1 to 2 per cent of total rides in the past two months ended with the bicycles being parked indiscriminately, Mr Ee told reporters.
Aside from introducing the new scoring system to deter irresponsible users, Mr Ee said the company has a “maintenance team” of eight people roaming the island to remove indiscriminately parked bicycles.
oBike is one of three bicycle-sharing companies that have begun offering services in Singapore, the other two being Ofo and Mobike. While the authorities have not given any statistics on the extent of the problem, irate Singaporeans have taken to social media to complain about indiscriminately parked rental bicycles in common areas.
A new feature to be rolled out on oBike’s app on April 20 aims to tackle this problem by helping users find suitable parking spots. Designated parking zones will show up as blue “P” signs on a user’s app.
Photo: oBike
These new designated bicycle parking zones, which can be found across the island, are in addition to the seven locations introduced by the Land Transport Authority in March and existing bike-parking areas at MRT stations.
oBike is also working with the Tampines Town Council to introduce parking zones at high-traffic areas. As part of the collaboration, oBike will provide Tampines residents with a one-month free trial, said Mr Ee, adding that details will be announced later.
How oBike works:
To start using the service, users need to deposit S$49 into a mobile wallet. They can then search for an available bicycle in their area, and unlock it using a QR code.
Rides cost S$0.50 every 15 minutes. Users end their rental by manually locking the bicycle.
