Bike sharing in Italy in 2016 has two speeds: the north forging ahead and in some cases aligning itself with the best European examples, while the rest of Italy lags behind.
Bike sharing and cities are a winning combination when local authorities commit consistently to strengthening sustainable and intermodal mobility in urban areas. Over recent years, bicycle-sharing services have gradually grown across Italy's main cities — not always with the success that was anticipated, but still managing to change people's habits.
In some cases, the ambition to offer an ever richer bike-sharing service in 2016 has driven a shift from the purchase of traditional bicycles to pedal-assisted bikes, right up to the first Italian bike-sharing scheme for children, created in Milan by BikeMi. Southern Italy finds it harder to sustain bike-sharing systems than the rest of the country. The regions with the greatest presence of bike sharing are, in particular, Emilia-Romagna, Piedmont, Veneto and Lombardy. Here is all the data on bike sharing in Italy in 2016.
If you type 'bike sharing' into Google, the first page is dedicated to BikeMi, Milan's scheme. In Italy there are approximately five shared bicycles per ten thousand inhabitants, but in Milan in 2013 the figure was 26, in Bergamo 21, and in Brescia and Lodi 20.9. BikeMi is open 365 days a year, from seven in the morning until one at night, and is available to users aged sixteen and over. Milan residents have access to 3,650 traditional bikes and 1,000 pedal-assisted bikes. The first 30 minutes are free, with a maximum usage time of two hours. BikeMi is the world's first integrated bike-sharing system, offering both traditional and electric vehicles. The shared bikes have three gears and automatic lighting; the electric bikes are equipped with front disc brakes. There is also Junior BikeMi, the world's first integrated bike-sharing scheme dedicated to children, who may only ride wearing the helmet provided.
The capital currently has no functioning bike-sharing system, following two failed attempts. This is despite existing demand: in the Parco dell'Appia Antica there are 30 bicycles purchased by activists and associations from the Parco della Caffarella. Thanks to Clear Channel, which also manages the schemes in Milan and Verona, bike sharing is expected to return to the capital: a total of 80 stations and 800 bicycles, two of which will be pedal-assisted. The agreement between the Associazione Imprese Pubblicità Esterne and Clear Channel provides for the project to be funded through advertising revenue.
Thanks to winning the "Smart Cities and Communities and Social Innovation" tender run by the Ministry of Education, Naples had an active bike-sharing scheme until 30 September 2015. The association Cleanap, made up of young people under thirty, was thus able to manage ten stations and one hundred bicycles, offering up to thirty minutes of free use from 7am to 10pm every day.
More than 14,000 people signed up to the bike-sharing scheme, generating 51,000 sessions, with a total usage time that allowed Naples residents to cycle the equivalent of three times around the world.
The Apulian regional capital is also making progress with the launch of an innovative bike-sharing scheme that requires no docking stations. In terms of traditional bike sharing, Bari can count on 22 stations and 230 bicycles. An annual subscription costs ten euros (five for those who also hold a public transport pass). The first hour is free, the second costs 50 cents, and from the third hour onwards the charge is one euro.
Emilia-Romagna is well known for its high rate of cycling. To use Bologna's bike-sharing service, all you need is a key obtained by paying a ten-euro deposit, after which you can take a bicycle — with use free of charge. Bologna has 216 bicycles distributed across 22 bays, active from 6am to 11pm.
Brescia is one of the best-equipped cities in relation to its population when it comes to bike sharing. There are 69 stations with 696 bikes, and more than 17,000 subscribers who have avoided emitting 1.5 million kilograms of CO2 by using a bicycle instead of a car. For just €2, payable by credit card, plus a deposit that is released once the bicycle is returned, it is possible to use the service for 8 hours with no limit on the number of bike trips.
In the Tuscan regional capital, users can take out a monthly subscription for 22 euros, giving access to one of the 225 bicycles available across the six stations. Alternatively, there is a one-day ticket for three euros or a one-hour ticket for one euro for residents of the province of Florence or Trenitalia/Ataf subscribers. For everyone else the costs are ten euros and two euros respectively, with the additional option of a five-hour pass for five euros.
The company offering bike sharing also provides car sharing — the first integration of this kind in Italy. A card costing 10 euros is valid for both shared cars and shared bikes. It gives access to 37 cycle bays, seven of which have photovoltaic canopies, and allows users to take one of 400 traditional bikes or twenty pedal-assisted bikes. Opening hours are seasonal: May to September 7am–midnight, October to April 7am–10.30pm.
The Mi Muovo service covers various cities in Emilia-Romagna, creating a bike-sharing ecosystem that extends beyond city boundaries to a provincial scale. It is an integrated service that, through a single card, allows users to access regional public transport. The cities involved are Piacenza, Parma, Reggio Emilia, Scandiano, Modena, S. Lazzaro di Savena (Bo), S. Giovanni in Persiceto (Bo), Ferrara, Ravenna, Forlì, Cesena and Rimini.
Across this area there are 77 stations from which 1,550 bicycles can be taken between 6am and midnight. So far, 136,000 trips have covered 526,000 kilometres and saved approximately 80,000 kilograms of CO2.
In the Trento area, a provincial model has been identified, in keeping with Trento's autonomous status. There are 33 active stations: 12 in Trento, 14 in Rovereto and 7 in Pergine Valsugana, also equipped with charging points for electric bicycles. In total there are 216 bicycles; in Trento, 65 city bikes and 32 pedal-assisted bikes, bookable with an annual subscription of 15 euros.