One of the dockless bike companies that was set to start operating in the city has already dropped out of the program.
China-based Ofo, which was supposed to provide 200 dockless bikes in the Bronx later this month, abruptly announced Thursday that the company will be scaling back international operations and not coming to New York City.
“It’s a new strategical phase on the international front,” Ofo France General Manager Laurent Kennel told Tech Crunch. “The company wants to focus on the most mature and promising markets.”
The city has contracted with five companies to bring dockless bikes to the boroughs. Pace and Lime Bikes started in the Rockaways last week. Ofo and Uber-owned JUMP were set to be in charge of the Bronx.
City officials promised to have another company fill the void.
“Our citywide dockless pilot, which we are proud to note opened to solid reviews in the Rockaways last week, has been structured so that we could nimbly make adjustments as we carefully evaluate the major players in an industry that has proven volatile to date,” said a transportation department spokeswoman. “We will work with our other dockless operators to ensure that our Bronx pilot is unaffected by Ofo’s withdrawal.”
Unlike Citi Bikes, which must be picked up from and brought back to a station after each use, dockless bikeshare companies use cycles with self-locking technology that customers can access through an app. They can then pick up and leave the bikes anywhere.