[Mobilité] Electric bike operator Fifteen wants to conquer Marseille
The metropolitan bicycle rental service, provided since 2007 by JC Decaux with the “Le vélo” offer, will go electric in early 2023. “ All motors will be replaced “, specifies a source close to the file in Gomet ‘. And the delegate may well change too. The Aix-Marseille Provence Metropolis, which has transport and road skills, launched a call for tenders in February 2021. The new contract will be signed for a period of eleven years. In particular, it provides for a doubling of the metropolitan fleet, with 2,000 electrically assisted bicycles spread over 200 stations – compared to 130 currently. The new districts will thus be covered. A way for the Metropolis to more closely follow the route of the metro and the tramway. Several candidates presented themselves. Among them, the French operator Fifteen, which has just raised 40 million euros. The young company assures in an interview granted to the editorial staff on March 11 to want “ create cyclists in Marseille “.
The Fifteen company was born from the acquisition last April of Zoov, a new player in self-service bicycles, by Smoove, the company behind the Parisian Velib’, which also operates internationally (Lima, Helsinki, Moscow …).
An “ultra-compact” station and a connected service
The French operator presents solid arguments in order to shake up JC Decaux, the current delegate, who intends to stay in the race. First point, the Fifteen station has an area equivalent to that of a parking space, and can contain up to 15 bicycles. that fit together like shopping carts “, explains Caroline Van Rentherghem, the director of public affairs. An easily adjustable and removable system “ in 45 minutes “, she assures.
The other argument is the bike originally developed by Zoov. A motor ” at the service of data », with GPS guidance on an integrated cycle route. Fifteen has a heat map on its application in order to ” know where the bikes pass in real time “says Caroline Van Rentherghem. An advantage that allows the operator to constantly know the needs of users in terms of vehicle availability. Fifteen would eventually like to create a ” increased intermodal network » in Marseille – a sort of generalized offer for all active modes of transport.
Meeting the Marseille challenge despite a fragmented cycle network
The latest barometer of cycling cities published in February by the French federation of bicycle users (FUB) is final. Marseille is still the red lantern of cities where it is good to ride a bike. A sad accolade that doesn’t seem to scare e-bike operator Fifteen. The company rather sees in this last place an opportunity. In the years to come, it is counting on the development of the Marseille cycle network. An extension announced since 2019 by the Aix-Marseille Metropolis through its plan »place for bicycles“. The institution promises in particular 85 kilometers of tracks in 2024, and 130 kilometers in 2030. But according to the pro-cycling collectives of Marseille, these objectives are unattainable in view of some work carried out to date. These users denounce a policy of supply without development. Despite everything, Caroline Van Rentherghem remains optimistic: “ the more services we put in place, the more cyclists we will create “.
Coexist with the municipal fleet of self-service bicycles
In Marseille, the town hall already has a fleet of 2,000 self-service electric bicycles (without a station) – the operators Dott and Lime are deploying 1,000 each. But according to Caroline Van Rentherghem, “ it’s not the same target “. She describes the municipal offer as being ” mainly aimed at tourists “, and adds:” you have to be very rich to get around by (bicycle) Lime every day of the year “. As a reminder, the American company, deployed in Marseille since May 2021, offers a price of 39.99 euros per month, against 24.99 euros for Dott.
Regarding the metropolitan offer, the “Bicycle” service currently costs 5 euros per year, and only one euro for RTM subscribers. However, it is very likely that the tariffs will extend under the new public service delegation – with machines going electric in early 2023.” We will see how much the selected delegate sets his prices, this is obviously an important criterion in the call for tenders “, Explains our source close to the file. She points out in passing that ” if the bikes are too expensive, people won’t take them “. The winner of the call for tenders should be announced this summer.
Useful links :
> Details of the call for tenders for self-service electric bikes in Marseille
> Self-service electric bikes: the Métropole is launching a call for tenders