The following is a partial translation of a Caixin article, 北京公租自行车涉嫌户籍歧视被起诉, published June 20 and written by Wang Qingfeng (王箐丰).
Caixin Online (Journalism Intern Wang Qingfeng) — Just this month, Beijing saw the launch of a public bike share service. On June 20, long-time Beijing lawyer Li Fangping called the hotline to register for the just opened Chaoyang District bike share service, but Li was told those with IDs from outside Beijing were not eligible for the service. Li then decided to sue the bike share provider, Goldnet Communication Technology Beijing Co., Ltd.
Beijing’s Dongcheng and Chaoyang districts reportedly opened the bike share system June 16 with 2,000 bikes at Jianguomen, Sanlitun, and 63 other locations. Those with second-generation Beijing ID cards can use a bike for free if under an hour, after which the fee is 1 RMB/hour, with the maximum daily fare set at 10 RMB for up to three days. …
The Beijing government information office’s official weibo wrote on June 18: “According to the operator, because the system is in its pilot phase, only second-generation Beijing IDs are supported. Even first-generation Beijing IDs will not work. But opening the service to all of our Beijing friends is the next step in the process.”
I personally have been a big fan of a similar service in Washington, D.C., which is also coming this summer to New York, and has already shown up in Boston and Boulder, Colo.
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