PBSC’s European presence: A bike-share success story!

PBSC Urban Solutions is excited to attend this year's Tomorrow Mobility World Congress, taking place in Barcelona from November 7 to 9, 2023. This annual event is all about improving urban mobility and solving transportation sector challenges among international experts, industry and governments. 

As our team gears up for TMWC, we’re taking the opportunity to highlight some of our industry-leading bike share systems throughout Europe! PBSC first entered the European market back in 2010, with London’s Santander Cycles – one of our most popular systems to date. Some 13 years later, our presence in Europe keeps growing, representing today:

• 35,000 bikes and e-bikes
• 2,500 stations
• 12 European cities
• 6 countries.

Read on to meet some of our European partners and discover their city success stories! 

Barcelona | Bicing 

Boasting a large-scale mixed fleet of our bikes and e-bikes, Barcelona’s Bicing system is a true European bike-share success. With more than 13.5 million trips taken each year, this popular system marked our entry into Spain.

When we first rolled out Bicing in 2019, we deployed the system in just 3 months, replacing another system by a different provider. We also seamlessly managed the system transition for more than 100,000 members. Since then, membership has increased by 35%. Recording today an average of 10 rides per bike per day, Bicing has become entrenched into local culture as part of daily life. PBSC’s presence in Spain doesn’t stop here, as we also launched our solutions in four other cities: San Sebastian, La Coruña, Valladolid and Madrid.

Monaco | MonaBike 

Acting as an important ingredient of Monaco’s Smart City program, which promotes low-carbon mobility, the MonaBike system was PBSC’s very first all-electric system launched in Europe. Replacing another system operated by a different provider (while also tripling in capacity), the friendly system remains ideal for the principality’s hilly terrain and has helped reduce traffic congestion in Monaco. Indeed, our e-bikes offer quick and accessible public transportation that makes it easy for more people to get around their city without breaking a sweat. 

MonaBike’s fleet of 400 dynamic e-bikes and 43 smart charging stations averages 6 times more rides than the previous network, with 2.5 times more members. In August 2023, ridership increased 27% compared to last year, and the system has recorded 1.8 million journeys since its launch.

Clermont-Ferrand | C.Vélo 

In 2021, PBSC rolled into Clermont-Ferrand, France with 680 ICONIC bikes, 57 solar stations and smart technology solutions to reinvent its C.Vélo bike share system! Replacing another system from a different supplier, we managed a smooth and successful transition – deploying the system in only 10 days. With 18,000 members and a million rides taken in 2022, each of our bikes racked up 7 rides a day. Our second solution in France (following Valence) enhances the sustainability goals of this historic agglomeration and undoubtedly complements its public transit infrastructure.

C.Vélo also has the smartest lock in town! Each bike is equipped with one of our smart locks, so cyclists can secure bikes to make stops en route. Smart locks also manage station overflow by allowing users to return bikes in proximity to a station when all the docking points are full.

Sibiu | Sibiu Bike City 

Launched in 2022, Sibiu Bike City is PBSC’s first system in Romania. Having already experienced its first expansion, with the deployment of 110 more bikes and 8 stations, the system now features a total of 650 FIT bikes and 57 solar-powered stations. 

This system is accompanied by exciting strides towards sustainability, including plans for additional dedicated bike lanes. The historic Transylvanian city received EU funds to implement this bike share solution, helping to finance active and sustainable mobility! With a 2030 goal of reducing CO2 emissions by 20%, part of Sibiu’s strategy is for 40% of trips to be made by foot or by bike, and our bike share solution plays an active role in helping to make the vision come to life.

Madrid | Bicimad 

Did you know that this September 2023, Bicimad recorded more than 40,000 rides in a single day? That’s right, Madrid’s new fully-electric bike share solution is off to a fantastic start. Showcasing the growing mobility trend towards electrification, Bicimad features our largest e-fleet ever, with 7,500 E-FITs and 611 smart charging stations.  

With 2.5 times more bikes and stations than the previous system spread out throughout all 21 of the city’s districts, near and far, our micromobility solution makes active mobility accessible to a wider range of people.

We couldn’t be happier to see our European presence putting smiles on people’s faces! Indeed, our ever-growing bike sharing solutions throughout Europe improve the quality of life of city's residents, influencing infrastructure development and reducing congestion in cities. We’re also excited to tell you about our next European cities who will soon be joining the PBSC movement. Stay tuned…