Mobike Thailand: What a fantastic idea!
I have heard of these things existing elsewhere but never lived in a place that ever had it. I found out about it today when walking down the street and what an amazing business to be able to take advantage of.
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Mobike is a bicycle sharing program / app where if you are a member you have unlimited access to the bikes that are parked in random locations all throughout the city. Obviously this would only work in major metro areas but now I finally live in one.
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You install the app pay an extraordinarily small fee of 250B for a month access (around $7.50) and then pull up your map and find one nearby. Once at the bike you scan a QR code and it does something in the sky and unlocks the back tire of the bike. After that, away you go!
Back in Krabi they will never have this program, the places you might want to go are entirely too far apart from one another and these bikes are very simple and have only one gear. Abandon all hopes of setting any lands speed records on these things and just accept the fact that it is more enjoyable than walking.
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Some areas of town are "hubs" where there are always a bunch of them but it isn't even against the rules to just leave them wherever you want. There are certain restrictions such as taking them out of town but like i said, you are not getting very far on these things - I rode about 10 miles or so and yeah, i was ready to get off of it.
I think the best thing for me about all of this is sometimes I think I have more energy than I actually do, or maybe I get drunk somewhere and I don't really have to worry about returning it. If i don't feel like riding home I don't have to and I also dont have to worry about anyone stealing it because provided I lock it back before I walk away, it is no longer my responsibility.
There are only 2 cities in Thailand that currently have this business and I am fortunate enough to live in one of them. I am also the kind of person that really doesn't want to be a fat ass so maybe this can help me achieve that goal.
I have heard about this sort of bike business from our bicycle factories in China. I never quite understood it and your explanation makes sense now. One gear is a bit rough and I suppose very little can go wrong with them. I think I would rather walk to be honest, but see it could be useful every now and then.
Multiple gears would be nice but every bike I've had always had problems with the derailleur and very little else.
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I bloody love mobike! Have used them a few times now and although its a bit tough going at times (no gears, airless tires, hard seat, etc), its so damn convenient. I kind of lost my bicycle some years back..well a lot of years back..and haven't used one often enough to justify buying a new one, despite sometimes missing cycling. So, when mobike came out I was so happy. Big thumbs up for these things. Just wish people wouldn't abuse the privilege (ie: chucking them in the moat....).
i think even after i move to the suburbs and I have another better bicycle i will still keep my mobike account active. Yeah, the bikes are not great but they are everywhere. I have never been anywhere in central Chiang Mai and had one more than say 100 meters from me. Faster that walking!
I think this is a great idea. The ones here are charging a dollar to unlock, then 15c per minute to use. The idea of a subscription seems pretty cool!
There are people here in LA, mostly in the rich areas, where people are complaining a lot about the scooters being left around. I think this is utter BS. They claim that the scooters are being left everywhere.
My response is, how hard is it to walk around a scooter vs the benefit that it provides for the neighborhood. First world problems I guess.
That’s awesome! They have them all over China :) when I think about some Asian countries I am surprised that they see pretty far ahead of England in many ways... England needs to step outta the Stone Age and catch up! They have all of the electric ones in China too.
It’s my 1 year steemit anniversary today, I just found out! How crazy, time flies. I just did a post about my 2018 to celebrate - feel free to check it out 😀
I have been following you pretty much since day 1 @gooddream ! 😀 and will continue to for the next years to come!
I thought i was already following you and I realize now that I wasn't... my apologies, the situation has been rectified
Serious!!? Chiang Mai got one? I used this when in SF last year.
i presumed that Bangkok was the other city where they had it. you don't ?
Not where I'm at. I have never seen one in Thailand. 👀👀
Apparently the first place they went was to BKK but only at Kasetsart University. I can only find an article about the launch... no follow up... maybe not a bike-friendly city, which is understandable for BKK.