City seeks company to offer e-bikes for sharing this summer
One company could be granted exclusive permission to offer an e-bikeshare service this summer in Kelowna.
Council on Monday supported a staff proposal to invite companies to bid on supplying the service this summer.
The city has generally allowed an unlimited number of companies to rent e-bikes to the public. They are most commonly rented by tourists looking for a way to explore the city over several hours.
An e-bikeshare service is different in that trips tend to be of a shorter duration, with users typically being residents looking for a different transpiration option.
In an e-bikeshare system, people typically sign-up to participate, and then have access to a fleet of ebikes at a variety of locations. Most users pick up an e-bike at one location and drop it off at another.
No companies are currently licensed to offer e-bikeshare services in Kelowna, and such operations are rare across Canada.
Granting an exclusive contract to a qualified bidder might draw more interest from companies capable of providing an e-bikeshare service, city officials believe.
The risks of exclusivity are also acknowledged, however: “One challenge with exclusivity for local governments is that it can often result in poorer service and higher costs for users due to the lack of competition,” reads part of a staff report to be considered by council.
If the plan to draw interest by offering an exclusive e-bikeshare contract fails, the city might consider providing a financial subsidy to make the program more attractive, staff suggest.