Skip to main content

European bike sharing market fuelled by innovations and government support

New research by Frost & Sullivan, European Bike Sharing Market, Forecast to 2025, indicates that the bike sharing fleet will more than double in size from 151,302 units in 2016 to 341,250 units in 2025. Southern and Western Europe have high public bike sharing service (BSS) activity. About 196 cities in Southern Europe have more than 35,000 rental bikes; in Western Europe, 150 cities have nearly 70,000 rental bikes. Spain and France are the strongest markets, but the UK, Germany and Italy are expanding quic
February 7, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
New research by 2097 Frost & Sullivan, European Bike Sharing Market, Forecast to 2025, indicates that the bike sharing fleet will more than double in size from 151,302 units in 2016 to 341,250 units in 2025. Southern and Western Europe have high public bike sharing service (BSS) activity. About 196 cities in Southern Europe have more than 35,000 rental bikes; in Western Europe, 150 cities have nearly 70,000 rental bikes. Spain and France are the strongest markets, but the UK, Germany and Italy are expanding quickly.

As densely populated urban centres all over the world grapple with issues of rising fuel consumption and carbon emissions, green mobility solutions such as public bike sharing service (BSS) are rising to prominence. This shift away from personal cars towards sustainable mobility solutions is bolstered by the high parking fees, volatile fuel costs and growing congestion in busy urban areas.

Although BSS enjoys escalating demand, high insurance costs could prove a deterrent to its wide-scale adoption. Furthermore, safety guidelines of bike sharing programmes are often not aligned with those mandated by insurance schemes, necessitating deeper analysis and resolution of the insurance issue.

“Urban commuters are considering multiple mobility options to optimise travel time and convenience for short distance travel of less than five kilometres,” said Frost & Sullivan mobility research analyst Debanjali Sen. “Consumer interest has prompted several BSS operators to explore integration of bike sharing with public transit and other modes of shared transport such as car sharing/ride sharing on a unified digital platform for ease of payment and bookings.”

Related Content

  • May 7, 2013
    Rising awareness of car sharing concept set to increase uptake
    According to Frost and Sullivan, whilst car sharing as a concept has existed for several years, the uptake rates and emergence of new players in the traditional as well as peer to peer (P2P) car sharing market has proliferated in the last five years. Member numbers increased by over 90 per cent between 2008 and 2012, growing from 500,000 to over 940,000 and, says Frost & Sullivan, this trend is set to continue. In an forthcoming web conference, Car Sharing – The Voice of the Consumer, on Tuesday, 14 May 201
  • November 28, 2014
    Connected cars market expected grow by a third globally by 2020
    A new report by Allied Market Research, Global Connected Cars Market (Technology, Connectivity Solutions, Application, Products & Services and Geography) - Size, Share, Global Trends, Company Profiles, Demand, Insights, Analysis, Research, Report, Opportunities, Segmentation and Forecast, 2013 - 2020, indicates that the global connected cars market is forecast to reach US$141 Billion by 2020, growing at a CAGR of 32.7 per cent during the period 2014 - 2020. The integrated connectivity solutions segment
  • February 15, 2017
    Automotive OEMs standardise testing to comply with RDE deadlines, say researchers
    Following 'dieselgate', the previously lax automobile emission testing procedures tightened and all European original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) are now required to implement real driving emissions (RDE). In September, RDE testing will have a conformity factor of 2.1, which will change to 1.5 by September 2021. OEMs will be more transparent with their testing methods and results. After the implementation of RDE, adoption of World Harmonisation Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP) will be simpler. The
  • September 24, 2013
    Report forecasts major growth in smart parking
    According to new analysis by Frost & Sullivan, Future of Vehicle Parking Management Systems in North America and Europe, growth opportunities are expected to attract new start-ups in the parking industry, providing real-time parking applications. The industry is expected to witness investments and funding from venture capitalist (VC) firms, ranging from US$200-$250 million in the next three to five years. This is made evident through the emergence of companies, such as Streetline (US and Europe), ParkatmyHo