At a two-day workshop in Brussels last week some of the worlds most advanced bike sharing cities came together with innovators in the bike sharing business community to tackle some of the challenges facing the bike share business today. The shared goal was an approach that will be a major resource to create more livable cities, contributing to a boom in overall cycling across the urban environment. 

During the PEBSS “Cities+Smart Bike Share” workshop global cities such as London, Dublin, Singapore, Moscow, Helsinki, Copenhagen, Lyon and many more heard from each other and EU officials, international organizations (UITP, ITDP, NACTO), and a wide variety of operators and bike share IT suppliers.  The workshop format built on the successful launch of PEBSS at the Velo-city Conference in June and got down to identifying the main challenges and opportunities for the sector. Political input came from Minister for Mobility Pascal Smet, of the Brussels Capital Region, together with MEP Michael Cramer.

The conclusions were almost unanimous. Cities and regions need new and shared regulatory frameworks to allow bike share to continue as one of the breakthrough technologies in mobility of the 21^st Century. Businesses also need new structures to allow for a level-playing-field in competition and investment and to allow sustainable business models to emerge. There is huge benefit if these developments are mutually developed and share the expertise of cities and business.

With this momentum there was a strong commitment to PEBSS as platform for experts to progress the frameworks needed. Experts from industry and cities committed themselves to sharing expertise and continuing expert groups in 2018.

PEBSS Director Paul Stratta said:

“I am pleased PEBSS is delivering on its mission to facilitate the open, frank workplace for the entire bike share eco-system.   I can see that Cities, PTAs / PTOs, governments, bike share operators, high-tech suppliers, NGOs, EU institutions, consultants and the media came away with a passion to continue the debate.”

Join PEBSS

PEBSS is open to all sectors of the shared mobility sector including system operators, makers, cities, regions and user groups.  Come join our expert groups and topic forums! 

ECF’s Cities and Regions for Cyclists Network is a collaboration of some of the world’s most ambitious cycling cities. Collaborative working allows expertise and knowledge to be shared with annual workshops on areas such as raising EU Funds for mobility projects and Bike Sharing.