Bike share provider Moby is partnering with taxi app Freenow and expanding the number of its bicycles available in Dublin from 500 to 1,500.
The service costs €1 to unlock for the first three minutes, and after that, costs €0.15 per minute for an e-bike and €0.02 for a manual bike. The bicycles are available today under a new ‘2-wheels’ option in the Freenow app.
Freenow, which also offers bicycle taxis via its app, hinted at offering scooters within months after the devices were made legal to use under certain requirements.
The taxi app company said that the move to offer Moby bikes on its app mirrors the multi-modal progress it has made in other markets, such as the UK, France, Spain, and Germany, where passengers are offered options for e-scooters, e-bikes, e-mopeds, and car sharing.
Moby also operates on-street bike share schemes in Dublin, Athlone, Mullingar, Ashbourne, and Tullamore, and recently launched a corporate bike share scheme for Dublin Airport. It already offers such services for Eastpoint Business Park and Sport Ireland.
The company said it currently has 500 bikes in Dublin alone, and it is in the process of expanding that to 1,500 bikes.
Charlie Gleeson, general manager of Freenow Ireland, said:
“We are delighted to partner with Moby to integrate a new bike service into the Freenow app… The Irish government’s ambitious target to reduce carbon emissions in the transport sector by 50% by 2030 sets a clear focus for the sector before the turn of the decade. At Freenow, we are committed to supporting the taxi industry’s progression towards these targets by continuing to onboard more EV drivers and expand our green EV taxi fleet alongside increased micro-mobility solutions, such as the Moby integration.”
He noted that new regulations allow for e-scooters on Irish roads and that the company has wider plans to integrate additional mobility options into their app “in the coming months.”
Akash Kajal, Moby's operations manager, said:
“We are thrilled to collaborate with Freenow to enhance mobility choices for Dublin transport users, making it even easier to rent and ride a bike for more people.”
He added:
“By integrating seamless Moby bike rentals directly into the Freenow app and leveraging Dublin City Council’s commendable efforts in expanding bike lanes citywide, we truly believe that multi-modal transportation can empower consumers with more efficient, sustainable, and healthier travel options throughout Dublin.”
