After the scooter war, about which we still have many chapters to unravel, another war is coming from the world of shared bikes. In this case, the ones that come with public awards under their arms. Tier, which has competed in several public competitions in Spain, has taken over the cycling business in the Barcelona metropolitan area through its Nextbike brand. The German technology company has succeeded, through a joint venture with Movus (part of the Urbaser Group) and Movement, in placing 2,300 shared bikes in the region.
Present in 15 municipalities of the Barcelona metropolitan area, Tier continues to strive to gain a foothold in the shared mobility market in Spain.. A strategy that actually makes sense. Since the rule changes, which from now on will tend to be selective in terms of the number of companies operating in each region, the fact that they are already operating in regions of the country is usually an argument in favor of getting more concessions.
“SMB is one of the most densely populated metropolitan areas in Europe and we are committed to guaranteeing the highest quality service to help it become a reference model for other regions and cities and thus facilitate the transition to sustainable mobility,” explains Manuel AraucoCEO of Tier in Spain.
This award, which will be called AMBici, will be presented in Hospitalet de Llobregat, Badalona, Cornella, Santa Coloma de Gramanet, El Prat de Llobregat, Esplugues de Llobregat, Sant Feliu de -Llobregat, Sant’Adria de Besos, Sant Juan Despi, Sant Just Desvern, Molins de Rei, Sant Boi, Viladecans, Gava and Castelldefels. Barcelona, the capital, was not awarded. To date, the public service – under a private concession – in Barcelona remains in the hands of Ferrovial, PBSC and EYSA. Both AMBici and the one in Barcelona will be similar to VALENBisi or BiciMAD.
Thus, the German technology ensures a presence in these 15 municipalities for the next 8 years and is also integrated into the public transport system. Thus, the total number of public transport vehicles in the country is 6200 units.
Public tier rewards are better than free floating ones
There is a gap between public premiums managed by one or more companies and license concessions. The history of joint mobility under operating licenses in Spain is turning from disaster to horror. Over time and through trial and error, the water seems to settle down. O.
The new award received by Tier is a far cry from what Barcelona – excluding public bike service – licensed to 10 companies in 2020. Basically, it’s the same old story. Many companies that distribute a limited number of licenses and earn low or low profitability over time end up throwing in the towel. In the case of Barcelona, of the companies that won the competition, only 6 officially remained. Of these, only 4 maintain operational units on the streets. This, like the first (and second) version of electric scooters in Madrid, chaos has engulfed the shared bike service in Barcelona. A city that at the moment does not want to hear or talk about electric scooters.
The same goes for general motorcycle maintenance in the region. Of the 21 who entered and won, only 10 remained. Same story, with many faces and zip codes.
From Barcelona to Madrid
Tier has one goal: to submit and win the electric scooter license competition that Madrid has just announced. After the deadline for submission of applications in the city, where up to 18 companies coexist at the same time, there will be only 3. Now, finally, common sense has triumphed on the streets and in the rules.
Tier will, of course, show up to act as one of those chosen ones. What is your biggest asset? They are already working in Berlin or London, having won similar competitions. “This experience has helped us understand the keys that enable us to offer successful micromobility services and become a better ally for city councils. Madrid is poised to become the most advanced micromobility city in Europe and its commitment is a good example of how to host shared micromobility services while ensuring their safe, efficient and orderly implementation,” Arauco said in a statement.
The competition in Barcelona is another step towards getting closer to obtaining those 2000 licenses that the capital is ready to use.
Source: Hiper Textual
