Urban bike-sharing is coming to North America in the form of Bixi, the new high-tech public bike system developed for the city of Montreal. Bixi follows the standard bike sharing principles: users take a bike from a stand, ride it to where they want to go, and drop it at another stand when they're done. To make the concept even more attractive to users, bikes will be equipped with RFID tags so that users can track availability online; real-time information is beamed to the web from the system's solar-powered bike stands.

Users will pay a membership fee of CDN 78 for one year, CDN 24 for one month or CDN 5 for one day. The first half hour of every trip is free, rising to CDN 12 per hour for extended periods of use. The aim is to encourage short trips, and fees compare favorably with the price of a monthly bus pass (CDN 66.25). One reason for the system's low cost is the long-lasting bikes, which were designed by Michel Dallaire and are expected to provide 75,000-100,000 km of travel.

Bixi's full launch is scheduled for April 2009, when 3,000 bikes will be installed in 300 locations across the city. Taking Montreal's fierce winters into account, Bixi will operate from April to November. If it all goes according to plan, the city will end up with a financially independent yet affordable scheme that will keep its residents fit and safe and its environment clean and open. (Related: City bike schemes — Bank-sponsored bike sharing.)

Website: www.bixi.ca
Contact: info@bixi.ca

Spotted by: Roberta Steinberg

Springwise readers are already well-acquainted with Zipcar, the car-sharing service we first featured back in 2003. In April 2007 we wrote about Zipcar's partnership with ParkAtMyHouse.com in the UK, allowing its cars to be dispersed even more finely throughout the parking spots of London. Now, thinking along similar lines, one of the leading parking operators in New York City has launched its own, competing car-sharing service for residents of the Big Apple.

Like Zipcar, Mint offers its members 24/7 access to its cars for as little as an hour or as much as several days. The company maintains a diverse fleet of fuel-efficient vehicles as well as fun ones for special occasions, and it frees members from having to worry about car payments, insurance, maintenance, parking or even gas. Each member gets a smartcard, which unlocks Mint cars and also begins and ends a member's reservation. All gas is paid for by Mint using a gas card located in each car—members must simply fill up when the car dips to a quarter tank—and an E-ZPass is included in each car as well, so tolls can be simply added to the reservation charge at the end of the month. To become a member of Mint, drivers pay an application fee of USD 25, which gets them one free year of membership. Hourly rates begin as low as USD 2 per hour, including 180 free miles per day.

Since any car-sharing service is going to need a ready supply of parking spots, it makes good sense to recognize that synergy from the get-go. Mint hopes to expand to other cities in the future—particularly if you're a parking operator, could be one to get in on early!

Website: www.drivemint.com
Contact: info@drivemint.com

Spotted by: Cecilia Biemann

Back in Springwise's early days, one of the first stories we covered was the car-sharing service from Zipcar. Fast forward almost six years, and the same topic has emerges again, this time from rental giant Hertz.

Launched late last month, Connect by Hertz now offers car sharing in London, Paris and New York City. In New York, for example, members of the service can choose from among three plans, depending on how often they drive. All three give consumers 180 free miles per day and free gas; costs range from USD 50 per year with a rate of USD 10 per hour, to USD 125 per month with an hourly rate of USD 8.50. Insurance, roadside assistance, maintenance and cleaning are all among the benefits included. Similar plans are available in London—priced at GBP 50 per year with hourly rates starting at GBP 3.95, including congestion charges and 30 free miles per day—and Paris, where the annual fee is EUR 120, with hourly rates beginning at EUR 4. Three low-emissions cars featuring iPod connectivity are available in each location—including the Mini Cooper—and are kept in designated parking bays. Members can reserve them by internet or phone, and entry is via a smart chip-enabled Connect Card. More cities will be added to Connect by Hertz in 2009—as well as select university locations, the New Jersey-based company says—and members will benefit from reciprocal membership at any location beginning early next year.

Given that each car-sharing vehicle in New York eliminates up to 14 traditional passenger cars from the road, according to Hertz—with similar statistics in other locations—the environmental benefits of car sharing are clear. Now, with the economy a shambles and the U.S. auto industry in ruins, it's a better bet than ever that more and more consumers will be eager to throw off the shackles of car ownership and become transumers instead. One to emulate in cities around the globe! (Related: Zipcar uses mobile GPS to pinpoint nearest car — Parking & zipping — Making sharing even better.)

Website: www.connectbyhertz.com
Contact: www.connectbyhertz.com/contact.aspx

Spotted by: RK

When we covered La Petite Reine this past spring, it had already expanded beyond Paris to offer business deliveries by cargo bike in Bordeaux, Rouen and Dijon. Recently we learned that the company is in the process of expanding once again, this time beyond French borders.

To recap our earlier story, La Petite Reine's Cargocycles are available for hire to make small and medium-sized urban deliveries. With a cargo space of 1,400 liters, each 80-kg Cargocycle can transport about 180 kg of merchandise over distances of up to 30 km. Advantages of the man-powered vehicles are that they are faster than trucks in urban congestion, highly maneuverable, less expensive to operate and completely nonpolluting. Now, after receiving numerous international inquiries over the years since its founding in 2001, La Petite Reine just recently extended into Switzerland with a franchise in Geneva. Early next year, it plans to begin operations in London. Through a collaboration with Office Depot, the bikes will undergo a trial in Camden by which they are used to deliver stock from a central depot to nearby clients, according to a report in the Evening Standard.

There are few things more gratifying to us here at Springwise than seeing a good idea spread, and La Petite Reine continues to seek additional franchise partners. How about bringing a fleet of cargo bikes to the congested urban roads near you....?

Website: www.lapetitereine.com
Contact: contact@lapetitereine.com

Gyms use it, broadband providers use it, DVD rental schemes use it, subways use it... Now it's time for taxis to adopt a flat-rate charge. Swiss start-up Taxmobil is planning to offer unlimited taxi use for a EUR 48 monthly fee. Customers will be able to buy a Taxmobil card online or from sales points around the city, and can call for a car to pick them up at whatever time they choose, travelling to any destination in the city. If two strangers are travelling in the same direction, Taxmobil may combine their journeys.

The key to Taxmobil's strategy is the fact that it doesn't own the cars it uses. Instead, it buys the time of idle taxis that are already out and about, creating a service that's affordable and convenient for customers, and could decrease congestion and parking problems if city dwellers trade in their cars for a Taxmobil card.

Böblingen in Southern Germany is likely to be the first town offering the service, starting early 2009, with other towns across Europe to follow. Travel is only permitted within a city, although members will be able to catch a taxi in other participating cities, too. As well as expanding the service's reach, Taxmobil will soon be extending its package options by complementing its standard EUR 48 subscription with cards for businesses and families. Discounts and member benefits will be made possible with the cards in future, too.

While public transport and bicycles are usually pitched as the green alternative to car ownership, there's something to be said for adding affordable taxis to the mix, offering people the option of individual door-to-door transport around the clock. How the system will work on rainy days, and whether EUR 48/month will leave any room for a profit, remains to be seen. One to watch!

Website: www.taxmobil.ch
Contact: www.taxmobil.ch/cms/front_content.php?idart=13

Spotted by: Susanna Haynie