e-Bike Pilot Program to Launch in San Fran

| January 9, 2018

e-Bike

Motivate International, the operator of the Bay Area’s regional bike share system, announced  it will add e-Bikes to its fleet, beginning with 250 e-Bikes in San Francisco this April.

The pedal-assist e-Bikes, produced by Silicon Valley-based GenZe, will help riders by boosting their natural pedal power, so they can get up hills more easily and ride for longer distances. This new offering will integrate with the Ford GoBike network and add a safe, reliable and affordable shared mobility option to the city.

“Our shared e-Bike is the newest product in our pipeline of innovative, sustainable mobility solutions,” said Jay Walder, CEO of Motivate. “We believe e-Bikes will be a game-changer for the San Francisco bikeshare experience, vastly improving accessibility and rideability. All kinds of riders, no matter their fitness or riding level, will be able to zoom up hills and zip around the city.”

“E-Bikes will give Bay Area residents and visitors one more option when traveling around San Francisco, which will help to make San Francisco more livable and reduce congestion and household transportation costs. We look forward to the expansion of the Ford GoBike e-Bike pilot to the other Ford GoBike cities,” said Alix Bockleman, deputy executive director for policy at the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), the regional governmental agency that partners with Motivate to bring bike sharing to the Bay Area. MTC also manages the Bay Area’s Clipper® card, which can now be used to unlock Ford GoBike.

“In many ways, e-Bikes are ideal for bikeshare programs because they make local, short-distance cycling easier for people,” said Vish Palekar, CEO of GenZe. “Our e-Bikes can go anywhere a conventional bicycle can go, including shared lanes and cycling paths – allowing riders to commute greater distances with no traffic and zero emissions. We’re excited to be a part of this innovative bikeshare initiative, and our partnership with Motivate.”

Riders can locate e-Bikes using the Ford GoBike app, rent them from any station where they are available using their Clipper card or smart phone, and park them at any station in San Francisco. For a limited time, Ford GoBike members and riders purchasing a day pass or single-trip fare will be able to ride an e-Bike at no extra cost. Bike Share for All members (low-income residents who become Ford GoBike annual members at the greatly discounted rate of $5 for their initial year) will always be able to use e-Bikes at no extra cost throughout the pilot, for rides of up to 60 minutes.

The custom e-Bikes were developed through a partnership with GenZe, a leading developer of zero-emissions, two-wheel electric vehicles. To announce the pilot program, the e-Bikes will be displayed at this week’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas as a part of the tech show’s “Smart Cities” exhibit. The e-Bike’s maximum speed is 18 mph. It features a 345 Wh Li-ion battery and a user interface panel that lets riders know their speed and battery charge level.

Category: General Update, Green, News

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