Technological innovations in navigation technology used in bicycles is anticipated to drive bike sharing market trends over the coming years. Bike sharing service providers are providing built-in navigation systems that facilitate easy commute for travelers. Changing consumer outlook towards bicycle sharing rather than owning bikes will propel the business growth.
Venture capitalists are making sizable investments in bike sharing startups to boost their business operations. Presence of large-scale venture capitalists is significantly contributing towards expanding portfolio capacity of startups. Bike friendly regulations coupled with rapid development of dedicated infrastructure around the world is expected to stimulate the market demand in the coming years.
Following are three influential trends positively impacting bike sharing industry size over 2019-2025.
Bike sharing services are largely used in Latin America and Asia Pacific countries like Brazil, India and China owing to the lack of sufficient investments to support the adoption of e-bikes. Companies are adding geared as well as conventional bicycles to their fleet to enhance business operations.
Multi-gear technology enables users to change speed depending on the terrain, enhancing riding efficiency and comfort. Increasing demand for conventional bikes owing to low initial and maintenance costs compared to e-bikes is driving the business growth.
Service providers are making large investments to incorporate advanced technological features such as AI, IoT and GPS in conventional bikes, accelerating the adoption of these services.
Station-based service segment of bike sharing market is anticipated to gain traction owing to a surge in government investments towards developing public transport infrastructure. Large number of companies are deploying new sharing stations at various locations to offer bikes to consumers at convenient locations and extend their geographical reach.
For instance, Divvy Bikes in 2018 had announced the deployment of 30 new stations in Chicago including Englewood, Ukrainian Village and River North. Similar projects will significantly bolster bike sharing market outlook. In addition, the station-based model minimizes risks of vandalism and theft due to enhanced security.
However, high costs pertaining to the establishment of these stations is fueling the adoption of P2P systems.
North America bike sharing industry share is poised to gain substantially by the end of the forecast period owing to robust growth of e-bike sharing services in the region. Companies are increasingly deploying e-bikes over conventional bicycles to deliver optimized performance to their customers. For instance, Madison BCycle had replaced its traditional bikes with e-bikes in the U.S. in June 2019.
Working professionals in various cities including Chicago, New York and Seattle are adopting these services to commute to and from their workplaces. The National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) reports that nearly 35 million shared trips were recorded in the U.S. during 2017, which is about 25% more compared to 2016.
Companies in the U.S. are also offering free rides, coupons and discounts on specific days to expand their customer base. For instance, in November 2018, Motivate and Citi Bikes had offered free rides to U.S. voters on election day. North America bike sharing market size is projected to register an appreciable 10% CAGR over the projected period.