Farewell to yellow bikes: the government of Buenos Aires introduced the new Ecobici system

The public bicycle system of the city of Buenos Aires, available nine years ago, will start from Monday 25 to work with a renewed image, a new technology and the projection of duplication of the number of stations and shots.

In addition, since the new administration, Banco Itaú and Mastercard are among the sponsors. That's why the historic yellow bike will cease to exist and will give way to the new orange bikes which, like the new stations, will be more modern.

The service, strictly speaking, remains the same: continues to operate free 24 hours a day, every day of the year and offering one hour of use on weekdays and two on weekends and holidays with a waiting time of 5 minutes to make another trip (currently, the journeys last on average 40 minutes).

The current system had 200 stations that will no longer operate on Monday. From now on, 50 stations with 500 bicycles will be available. However, the Government of Buenos Aires plans to create 200 new stations where existing stations will be 400 before the middle of the year. C & # 39; is to say, double the number of stations, go from 2,500 bikes to 4,000 and reach 38 districts instead of 22.

Although the service can be used only from Monday 25 (Friday 22, Saturday 23 and Sunday 24 will not work), Online registration for users is already enabled. From Friday 22nd, in addition, the application BA Ecobici will be available from Tembici (for Android and iOS) from which the system can be used, which can also be used via the miBA card.

Currently, the Ecobici service has managed to accumulate up to 16,000 trips a day and aims to multiply it, according to official sources.

"When we started with the yellow bike, it seemed crazy, but the neighbors showed that culture change was possible. We started with 0.4% of bike trips in the city and now account for 4% of total trips. We are at the level of all cities on the planet where cycling is an alternative to mobility, "he said. Juan José Méndez, Secretary of Transport of Buenos Aires in the presentation of the system, in which he participated Infobae.

"This is one of the nuts and bolts that is part of this vision that we must promote, strengthen and continuously improve public transport, so that more and more people are leaving the private car to turn to one of the various transportation systems available in the city"he stressed Felipe Miguel, Chief of Staff of the Ministers of the City of Buenos Aires.

"This is a bike more robust, more modern, with three changes (which facilitates pedaling even over long distances), with a more modern security system, internal brakes, totally vandal-proof and proven in many cities around the world", Stressed Mendez.

"Several cities in the region like San Pablo, Rio de Janeiro and Santiago de Chile use it, but cities like New York have the same bike and the same resort. We integrate the best level of bike service in the city of Buenos Aires"added the official.

New bikes will have improvements, like the brakesroller brake& # 39; to ensure safer braking; Lights come on when the cyclist starts pedaling with a dynamo; reinforced chain with built-in protection to protect the user's clothing; reinforced wheels and covered with an anti-puncture system; weather resistant seat with vandal resistant aluminum spout and marking for height adjustment; reinforced handlebars with cable guards; basket for the transfer of personal items; pedal and bell metal and anti-slip, reported by the Government of Buenos Aires.

The new stations will have an anchor of individual, modular and portable bicycles to adapt them to each location and facilitate their maintenance, with energy-saving technology, without the need for civil works for their installation, with materials designed to withstand extreme weather conditions signaling and information on the operation of the system. In addition, as a novelty, each station has a button to announce the case where the bike needs to be repaired.

"It's a pleasure to be able to collaborate with all mobility policies conducted by the city of Buenos Aires," said Tomás Martins, CEO of Tembici, also present at the launch.

"We do not doubt that it will be a success, that Buenos Aires will be the city that will make the most trips of our system", he predicts.

What is the destiny of yellow bikes? The 2,500 bikes that will cease to be used on Monday will be distributed to high school students in Buenos Aires and the 44 employees working for the bicycle transit system have become staff members of the Brazilian company as of 1 December. January

In parallel with the presentation of the new system, the government also aims to extend the protected network of bicycles and bicycles, which currently has 230 kilometers. The goal of 2019 is that bike lanes cover 250 kilometers, which are planned in conjunction with the location of the new stations.

To register for the new Ecobici system, current users must also register via the Web (baecobici.com.ar), in person (at Balboa 220, Chacarita, Monday to Friday from 9:30 am to 5:00 pm) . DNI and an invoice for a service with the same name and / or address appearing on the DNI (without debt and with a maximum seniority of two months).