E-bikes, Uber’s New Mode of Transportation

Here comes Uber’s pilot project, Uber E-bikes, with a plan of changing the transportation style for people around the world.
The San Francisco-headquartered firm, Uber, has collaborated with Yulu, a bicycle sharing platform in India. The partnership between the two companies is the result of the mutual goal they share. The goal is to benefit themselves through the growing demand for e-bikes in the market.
The ride-hailing application has realized the importance and growing popularity of e-bikes in one of the largest countries of the world. The increase in production and marketing off e-bikes in the country has emerged as a challenge for the taxi services.
source: Yulu Blog
The Bengaluru-based startup, Yulu, operates up to 500 e-bikes and 4,500 bicycles through its platform. The e-bikes and bicycles startup started its journey just 2 years back. However, due to the increasing demand for its product in the market, the start-up managed to raise about $7 million in funding. The funding was done by a number of big profile names including Blume Ventures, 3One4 Capital, Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal, and Freshworks cofounder Girish Mathrubootham.
However, with its new partner, Uber, the start-up is about to do something big in the country. The users of the widely-popular ride-hailing application started spotting E-bikes as an option for their mode of transportation in Bengaluru.
source: India.com
This is surely the first time that Uber decided to collaborate with a e-bikes operating company, and that too in India. The authorities familiar with this pilot project of Uber regards its decision as “clouded with uncertainty.” Uber has been struggling to stabilize its business in India after the strong pillar of marketing and the person who used to run Uber India, Amit Jain, left the charge.
Nevertheless, the new service by Uber is available is less than three dozen cities in India is competing with Ola available in more 100 cities. This pretty much shows that the people of India are accepting the transportation change welcomed in the country through Uber and Yulu partnership.
According to Techcrunch, Ola, which leads the ride-hailing market in India, has made bigger bets on e-bikes in the nation. The company, which like Uber is backed by SoftBank, invested $100 million in scooter rental startup Vogue late last year. Vogue, which operates in Bengaluru and Hyderabad, said it will use the capital to add an additional 100,000 scooters to its platform.
Uber is currently head over heel in love with its collaboration with electronic bikes operating startup in India. According to Uber, Yulu’s e-bikes can clock up to 25 km/h. Which makes its speed faster than the average traffic speed. One more thing that is put forward as a benefit of Yulu and Uber’s project is that the e-bikes unlike other means of transport, don’t require a license to operate.
The users will be simply asked to unlock the QR code from the Uber App to participate in the pilot program.
source: Yulu
Who isn’t aware of the growing pollution in the world?
Developing cities like London has urged its population to start conducting their lives in a way that create less pollution in the surrounding. From taking public transports instead of private cars to walking and taking alternate routes, people have started focusing on reducing the alarming situation.
E-bikes have come into consideration after people started recognizing it as the ‘environment-friendly’ transport mode. According to experts, electronic bikes are not a healthier option for the human body but they are also environment-friendly in its nature.
Still, it’s not completely transparent that the above reasons are the only reasons that are a source to increasing demands of e-bikes. Because these form of bikes are much easier and beneficial than regular bikes. It provides the bikers with an edge and comfort as compared to the common bicycles.
While this service of Uber has put its feet in India, we can’t wait to have it all around the world.