[p2p-research] bikesharing in paris, not so bad at all

[Michel Bauwens]

an update on the velib bikesharing story, which sheds a different light,
from http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/009425.html

If you've read this BBC
story<http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7881079.stm>currently making
the rounds, you'd be forgiven for thinking that
Vélib <http://www.streetsblog.org/2008/07/15/happy-birthday-velib/>, Paris's
wildly popular bike-share system, has suddenly been afflicted by an epidemic
of theft and vandalism that threatens its very existence. Vélib bikes have
been "torched," strung up from lamp-posts, and smuggled across borders, the
Beeb reports in alarmist tones. A spokesman for
JCDecaux<http://www.jcdecaux.com/content/jcdecaux_en/accueil/>,
the outdoor advertising firm that operates Vélib, calls its contract with
the city of Paris "unsustainable," and the whole system is referred to in
the past tense.

So is Vélib destined to burn brightly only to flare out after a short time?
Hardly. Vélib is here to stay, according to officials and transportation
experts familiar with the details of its operations. The BBC's portrayal of
a mortal threat, they say, is best understood as a negotiating ploy on the
part of JCDecaux. (Note that the JCDecaux representative is the only source
quoted in that story.)

"Decaux is using media sensationalism in order to obtain more money from the
city of Paris," said Denis
Baupin<http://www.iht.com/articles/2009/01/22/business/wbspot24.1-411196.php>,
who as Deputy Mayor for Transportation oversaw the Vélib launch in the
summer of 2007.

The basic structure of the Vélib contract works like this. JCDecaux runs the
whole system in exchange for the rights to 1,600 outdoor displays, turning
its profit from selling that ad space. The city of Paris keeps the revenue
from Vélib user fees, so it can claim to provide the service at no taxpayer
expense. Now, with the full Paris network of 20,600 bicycles and 1,451
stations completed, penalties for inadequate maintenance are in the process
of taking effect. Hence the hue and cry from JCDecaux.

"It's in large part a PR issue," says Luc Nadal of the Institute for
Transportation and Development Policy <http://www.itdp.org/>. Some aspects
of the Vélib contract are still in flux, and the sky-is-falling press
coverage gives JCDecaux a stronger hand in those negotiations. "Their
bargaining position depends on the public's perception."

Not that bicycle abuse is a phantom problem. It exacts a real toll, but much
of that cost has been anticipated and accounted for. Last July, the city of
Paris agreed to pay JCDecaux 400 euros for every bike stolen in excess of
four percent of the total fleet each year. Given the enormous popularity of
Vélib -- users have taken 42 million rides since its debut -- the cost of
those payments is minimal. Using the BBC's figure of 7,800 missing bikes,
the pricetag for the city comes to less than 2 million euros annually, out
of 20 million euros in user fees.

"It averages out to about 15 stolen per day, out of 80,000 daily users,"
says Eric Britton, founder of the Paris-based New Mobility
Agenda<http://www.messages.newmobility.org/>.
"It's like skinning your knee."

Not only does the city already pick up a big part of the tab, but JCDecaux
reportedly hauls in about 80 million euros per year from its outdoor
displays, according to estimates cited by Britton. It's difficult to know
the exact figure -- and how much is profit -- because JCDecaux guards the
data like a nuclear secret. Even the precise cost of replacing one Vélib
bicycle remains unknown to the public. Inquiries we sent to JCDecaux's
headquarters in Paris have not been returned.

Public support for Vélib remains unflagging. "Vélib has been totally
embraced by Mayor Bertrand Delanoe himself," said Nadal. What politician
wouldn't jump at the chance to be identified with a program that enjoys 94
percent satisfaction<http://www.streetsblog.org/2008/05/08/how-happy-are-parisians-with-velib/>among
constituents?

This is largely a testament to JCDecaux's success in operating the system.
According to Baupin's office, however, Vélib maintenance workers report that
management has let upkeep slide in order to amplify the perception of
vandalism.

JCDecaux's media gamesmanship "is short-sighted," said Baupin, in a
statement translated from the French. "One should not lose sight of the
remarkable success of this transportation mode due to a slightly
underestimated rate of
vandalism."


-- 
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