HOW BIKES AND SCOOTERS ARE SHAKING UP

URBAN TRANSPORT WORLDWIDE

The Micromobility
Revolution 2020
Micromobility startups have struggled
with profitability issues, which have
been exacerbated by Covid-19. But these
startups could see a post-pandemic
rebound. We dive into what micromobility
looks like around the world, leaders
across the space, and obstacles that
these transportation solutions are facing.

Most city dwellers have by now seen the explosion of shared bikes
and scooters popping up around their city — and if not, they will
soon enough.

As congestion in cities rises, existing transportation — from cars

to buses to trains — can no longer keep up with the growing
population. Americans have lost an average of 99 hours a year due
to traffic congestion, according to the 2019 INRIX National Traffic
Scorecard, and in 2019, traffic cost Americans roughly $88B, or an
average of almost $1,400 per driver.

With cities pressed to solve their transportation crisis amid rising

concerns around gas-powered emissions, micromobility startups
are emerging as a powerful alternative to the current public transit
mix — especially as the Covid-19 crisis impacts the sector.

So far, the coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc on the

micromobility industry, especially in its early days as people
remained sheltered at home.

The Micromobility Revolution 2

But there remains potential for micromobility startups to rebound as
people reemerge from lockdown and look for single-rider, open-air
transit alternatives. Bikes and scooters could offer safer methods of
transportation — allowing outdoor transit, control over social distancing,
and fewer points of shared contact — compared to public transportation.

Micromobility refers to short-distance transport, usually less than 5 miles.

Increasingly, it is shorthand for the growing crop of bike– and scooter-
sharing companies that are poised to remake the urban landscape.

With urbanization on the rise, the majority of trips people take fall within
the category of micromobility and thus are prime candidates for bike and
scooter usage. In the US, roughly 60% of all trips are 5 miles or less.

The Micromobility Revolution 3

And as consumers take advantage of this growing trend, the market
opportunity continues to expand. In the US alone, the micromobility
market is predicted to be worth between $200B – $300B by 2030.
Worldwide, investors have already poured more than $5.7B into
micromobility startups since 2015.

While there are certainly some challenges that come along with the
growing micromobility trend, including lack of regulation, citywide
bans, and theft, this phenomenon has the potential to massively
disrupt the mobility industry globally.

In this analysis, we look at micromobility initiatives across the globe as

well at the challenges faced in the adoption of these mobility solutions.

The Micromobility Revolution 4

WHAT IS CB INSIGHTS?

CB Insights is a tech market intelligence

platform that analyzes millions of data
points on venture capital, startups, patents,
partnerships and news mentions to help
you see tomorrow’s opportunities, today.

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

Table of Contents

WHY THE SHIFT TO MICROMOBILITY? 7

THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 9

MICROMOBILITY AROUND THE WORLD 11

Asia 11
China 12
India 15
Southeast Asia 17

A SHIFT TO SCOOTERS IN NORTH AMERICA 19

SCOOTERS SEE RAPID ADOPTION IN 25

SOUTH AMERICA

INVESTORS DIRECT ATTENTION TO 29

OPPORTUNITY IN EUROPE

MICROMOBILITY YET TO TAKE OFF IN AFRICA 34

CHALLENGES THE MICROMOBILITY WORLD FACES 37

DESPITE CHALLENGES, FUTURE 46

OF MICROMOBILITY LOOKS BRIGHT

The Micromobility Revolution 6

Why the shift to micromobility?

Cities around the world are quickly growing in size and population.
In fact, projections show that by 2050, an additional 2.5B people
will reside in urban areas globally. With most cities already
dealing with dangerous levels of pollution and gridlocked streets,
micromobility could solve a handful of problems.
Among many use cases, micromobility services increase access to
public transportation, reduce the amount of cars on the road, lower
our environmental footprint, and provide convenient methods of
transportation for short trips — all while being cost effective.
Electric scooters, for example, can also be more efficient than
other modes of transport. One kilowatt hour of energy can only get
a gasoline-powered car to travel 0.8 miles, according to Wired. An
electric vehicle can travel 4.1 miles under the same conditions.
However, an electric scooter can travel 82.8 miles using the same
amount of energy.

Source: Levi Tillemann and Lassor Feasley

The Micromobility Revolution 7

For city dwellers, renting a bike or scooter is often much cheaper
than owning a car or taking a taxi to a destination. Moreover, they
take up less space.
Yet, there are still some rising challenges associated with
bikes and scooters. From their general adoption to regulation &
infrastructure issues, micromobility solutions are not well-suited
to thrive in all regions. (We’ll dive more into this below.)

The Micromobility Revolution 8

Covid-19 initially devastated scooter
companies, but could ultimately
accelerate micromobility adoption

The Covid-19 pandemic essentially decimated demand for public

or shared transport as businesses shuttered and people stayed
home more. This proved devastating for unprofitable companies,
especially ones that were already hemorrhaging money.
As people remained reluctant to leave the house, spending on
shared scooters and bikes plunged the most of all transportation
methods, nosediving by nearly 100%, according to the New York
Times. (Taxis and mass transit were down at similar levels.)
Amid the coronavirus-induced upheaval, Lime laid off 13% of its
workforce, saw its valuation fall by 79%, and initially withdrew from
virtually all of its foreign markets. Rival scooter sharing company
Bird laid off 30% of its staff in March. After acquiring Middle East-
based micromobility startup Circ in January, Bird shut down its
entire operation in the region in June.
However, hope remains for the post-pandemic micromobility
market. There’s already been some signs of recovery: in April,
nationwide e-bike purchases were up 85% relative to March 2019,
and sales of adult leisure bikes tripled.
Asia has seen demand for micromobility boom as people resume
daily operations. Lime has reported that scooter trips in South
Korea are up 14% thus far; Meituan Bikes saw record cycling
volume surge past pre-pandemic levels; and Hellobike saw 30%
month-over-month growth. In the US, Lyft-operated Citi Bike and
Lime have also both offered healthcare workers free rides amid the
pandemic, positioning themselves as essential infrastructure.

The Micromobility Revolution 9

The industry may shrink post-pandemic as smaller players
fold. Uber’s $170M investment in Lime brought with it a deal
to transfer Uber’s micromobility startup Jump to Lime, and
manufacturer Superpedestrian recently acquired Zagster,
creating a fully integrated micromobility company.
Remaining industry players could see more demand as people
avoid crowded public transportation. Given fewer contact points
and the ease of social distancing, scooters and bikes may be
seen as less risky than cars, buses, or subways.

The Micromobility Revolution 10

Micromobility around the world

ASIA LEADS THE WAY IN BIKE SHARING

Asia has been the leading pioneer in the micromobility world, with
China being the first country to implement a dockless bike-sharing
platform in 2015.

With less regulatory red tape in place compared to Europe and

North America, micromobility startups had the advantage of quick
implementation across cities in Asia. This lack of regulation,
however, also resulted in an over-saturated market, with millions
of bicycles piling up in city streets.

Yet, in a continent fraught with dangerously high urban pollution

levels and ultra-congested streets, it makes sense that cities like
Beijing and Shanghai are leading the way to reduce automotive
transportation and make the switch to emission-free solutions.

Today, shared bikes are now the third most popular mode of
public transit in China. Other Asian countries, including Singapore,
Taiwan, and South Korea are also seeing much success within the
micromobility market.

The Micromobility Revolution 11

CHINA PIONEERS BIKE-SHARING PLATFORMS
Docked bike-sharing municipal programs were launched in
major Chinese cities as early as 2008, in an effort to alleviate
mobility issues.
The first and most successful public program in China is
Hangzhou Public Bicycle, launched by the Hangzhou Public
Transport Corporation in May 2008. Numerous other cities
within China, including Beijing, Shanghai, Wenzhou, Kunming,
and Guangzhou, also set up public bike-sharing programs after
the Hangzhou debut.
As private dockless bike-sharing companies began to move
in, these public programs have largely declined, though they
still exist.
Several Chinese micromobility startups
have already achieved unicorn status ($1B+
valuations), the first being Ofo, which was
founded in 2014.
At its peak, the Beijing-based bike-sharing
company managed to deploy more than 10M
bikes worldwide across countries like the US,
the UK, Singapore, Australia, France, and more.
But the massive startup struggled to stay
afloat with high operational costs and fierce competition. In 2018,
Ofo scaled back its international expansion plans and generated
controversy when it was unable to refund nearly $170M in rider
deposits. Now, the company has largely dropped off the grid, with
few bikes in sight on China’s streets.
Ofo competitor Mobike, which was founded in early 2015, also
saw growth at breakneck speeds when it first launched, expanding
internationally to 19 countries worldwide.

The Micromobility Revolution 12

Yet, like Ofo, Mobike was unprofitable. In April 2018, Mobike
was sold to Chinese meal delivery Meituan Dianping for $2.7B
and rebranded to Meituan Bike. In order to cut costs, Meituan
announced its retreat from most of its foreign markets. It also
wrote down the brand value of the bike-sharing unit by $198M
(1.4B yuan).

Another prominent bike-sharing platform is Hellobike, based

in Shanghai.

Hellobike also achieved unicorn status with the help from top
investors like Ant Financial, a financial affiliate of Alibaba.

Launched in 2016, Hellobike found its start by

targeting smaller cities, rather than major cities
like Beijing and Shanghai that were already
over-saturated — 95% of Hellobike users reside
in second- and third-tier cities. As of October
2018, Hellobike operates in 300 cities across
China, with over 20M rides booked each day.

The Micromobility Revolution 13

In 2017, it began shifting its focus to e-bikes, rather than regular
bicycles, and set up charging kiosks across its operating areas.
In 2019, Hellobike’s chief financial officer said that the company
had captured 80% of the e-bike market in China.

China’s largest ride-hailing service, Didi Chuxing has also

expanded into bike sharing, after acquiring bankrupt bike-sharing
startup Bluegogo in 2018. In April 2020, the unit, which boasts
both e-bikes and human-powered bicycles, raised $150M from
SoftBank and Legend Capital. In June, Didi Bike announced that
orders hit 10M daily orders, as China recovered from Covid-19.

The Micromobility Revolution 14

INDIA SEES SOME TRACTION
In India, a small group of startups are tackling the complex
transportation market, with mopeds attracting particular attention.
Poor road infrastructure coupled with congested streets make for
difficult challenges, but startups like Bounce, Vogo, and Yulu are
addressing them via their micromobility solutions.
Scooter-sharing startup Bounce says it operates more than 20,000
electric and gasoline dockless bikes and motor scooters in the
country. In January, it raised $105M in a follow-on Series D round
at a $500M valuation. It acquired Ofo’s e-scooter unit in 2018,
after the China-based company began to feel the cash crunch.

Source: Bounce

The Micromobility Revolution 15

Vogo is another leading player in India’s micromobility space.
Ride-hailing giant Ola backed the motor scooter rental startup in
late 2018, infusing $100M to help the company expand its fleets.
In May, Vogo’s founder said that demand should bounce back to
pre-Covid levels within a few months.
Another competitor is electric bike sharing platform Yulu, which
has also found some notable backers. Yulu inked a partnership
with Uber in 2019, allowing users to access its bikes through the
Uber app. In November 2019, motorcycle manufacturer Bajaj Auto
backed Yulu in its $8M Series A round and entered a strategic
partnership with the startup to design and produce its e-scooters.
Yulu CEO Amit Gupta remains optimistic about the post-pandemic
future, saying, “In the short period that we have resumed regular
operations, our business has bounced back pretty fast and much
ahead of our expectations. Single self-driven vehicles have been found
to be one of the best ways to commute in the post-Covid world.”

The Micromobility Revolution 16

SOUTHEAST ASIA GAINS SPEED
Southeast Asia’s first “decacorn” — a startup with a valuation
of over $10B — is ride-hailing company Grab, headquartered in
Singapore.
Last valued at $14.3B as of June 2019, Grab expanded to offer
shared bikes and e-scooters in 2018. The program was first
known as GrabCycle and then was rebranded to GrabWheels
as the company moved to focus on e-scooters over bicycles.
However, the company is facing stricter regulation following the
deaths of two e-scooter riders who collided with a car in Jakarta in
November 2019.

Source: Nikkei Asian Review

Singapore-based startup Neuron Mobility launched in 2016 to

offer dockless bicycles as well as docked electric scooters in
Southeast Asia.
However, in 2019, Neuron halted its e-scooter service in its home
market as well as Thailand, citing a strategic shift to Australia and
New Zealand. Investors include 500 Startups, SeedPlus, and Ace
Capital, among others.
Neuron Mobility raises US$3.66mil to enhance urban mobility in
SEA.

The Micromobility Revolution 17

Another contender in the Southeast Asia e-scooter market is
Singapore-based Beam. The company currently operates in
Malaysia, as well as South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, and
Taiwan. In May 2020, it raised a $26M Series A to expand within
its markets.
As for foreign companies that have expanded to the Asian
market, US-based Lime has been operating in Singapore since
November 2018.
Despite recent regulatory obstacles, e-scooter operators in
Southeast Asia remain optimistic about the growing market
opportunity in the region. High population density coupled
with strong economic and population growth are challenges
that micromobility devices could potentially solve, per Neuron
Mobility’s co-founder.

The Micromobility Revolution 18

A shift to scooters in North America

The US was the first country to see dockless electric kick scooters
appearing on city streets.

In September 2017, Bird dispatched hundreds of its kick scooters

onto the streets of Santa Monica, California. Much like the early
days of ride-hailing companies like Uber and Lyft emerging, there
was backlash from citizens and city officials alike.

Despite regulatory hiccups along the way, the dockless scooter

craze witnessed aggressive growth in its early years. Several
US-based scooter-sharing companies achieved unicorn status at
lightning speeds as big investors poured millions of dollars into
the space, though growth has since slowed given Covid-19.

About 70% of Americans living in major urban areas view

e-scooters positively, according to a 2018 survey.

The Micromobility Revolution 19

Shared bicycle programs have existed in many major cities across
North America over the last decade, with the first large-scale
system launched in May 2009 in Montreal, but remain less popular
than e-scooters.
In 2018, e-scooters overtook shared bikes as the preferred method
of dockless transportation. Today, dockless bikes have largely
disappeared from cities. For example, Uber acquired Jump Bikes
in 2018 but transferred it to Lime in May 2020 as part of a larger
investment. Lime has since scrapped tens of thousands of Jump’s
older bikes.

The Micromobility Revolution 20

BIRD AND LIME: THE TOP SCOOTER UNICORNS
Despite being industry leaders, Bird and Lime have struggled to
stay afloat amid the pandemic, with both facing revenue crunches
and mass layoffs.
California-based Bird was the first pure-play scooter-sharing
startup to exist globally.
The company achieved unicorn status in less than 9 months after
being founded in September 2017, making it the fastest company
in the world to reach a valuation of $1B. Just 4 months later,
Bird doubled in valuation to $2B. Bird currently operates in 80
cities throughout North America, Europe, and more — though the
vast majority of these cities are within the US. It previously had
scooters on the streets of the Middle East and Latin America, but
had to pull back as the startup rushed to cut costs.
To date, Bird has acquired 2 micromobility startups: Scoot, in June
2019, and Circ, in January 2020.
In March 2020, Bird eliminated 400+ employees as Covid-19
caused demand to plummet. Reports of workplace issues,
derived from a culture that emphasized expansion at all costs,
began to emerge as the pandemic placed additional pressure on
the company. Employees brought up issues of poor leadership,
hiring sprees followed by waves of layoffs, favoritism, and lack
of diversity.

The Micromobility Revolution 21

Bird’s largest competitor is Lime, a transportation company that
offers shared bicycles and scooters.
Lime also quickly reached unicorn status and was valued at
$2.4B — until Covid-19 hit. In May 2020, Uber offloaded its bike
sharing business to Lime — shaving nearly 80% off of Lime’s
valuation — now at $510M — in the process.

Source: Reuters

The Micromobility Revolution 22

AMERICAN RIDE-HAILING COMPANIES BREAK INTO
MICROMOBILITY
North America’s largest ride-hailing companies have recently
jumped onto the micromobility bandwagon in an effort to
incorporate all forms of transportation into their portfolio of
services.
With the acquisition of bike-sharing company Motivate, Lyft
became the largest bike-share service in North America at the end
of 2018.
As a result, Lyft now owns a majority of the US’s most popular
bike-share programs, including Citi Bike (New York), Ford GoBike
(San Francisco), Divvy (Chicago), Bluebikes (Boston), and several
others. Lyft has also launched fleets of its own electric scooters
across American cities at the end of 2018, including in Denver,
Austin, Atlanta, Los Angeles, and Nashville, though it’s stopped
operations in some cities since.
Lyft has also faced troubles amid the pandemic, laying off 17% of
its workforce as of April.
Ride-hailing giant Uber also has also been making moves in the
micromobility space.

The Micromobility Revolution 23

As mentioned above, Uber purchased Jump Bikes in 2018, but
transferred it to Lime in May 2020 as part of a funding round to the
company. The transaction would also allow Uber to purchase Lime
between 2022 and 2024 at a set price. This announcement came
as Uber cut 14% of its workforce, with Covid-19 causing gross
bookings to fall as much as 70%.
Uber’s CEO has previously stated that he is very bullish on
personal individual electric vehicles such as e-scooters, hoping
fewer people will own cars as time goes on.
“During rush hour, it is very inefficient for a one-ton hulk of metal
to take one person 10 blocks,” said Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi
in an interview.
Beyond scooters, electric mopeds have also made an appearance
in the US. New York-based Revel, launched in 2018, raised a $28M
Series A in October 2019. It has since expanded to Austin, Miami,
Oakland, and Washington DC.

The Micromobility Revolution 24

Scooters see rapid adoption in
South America

Many of South America’s large metropolitan areas are frequently

congested with traffic jams and do not have sufficient public
transportation systems in place, particularly during peak rush
hours. As a result, micromobility solutions like shared bicycle and
e-scooter programs are an attractive solution that some cities are
turning toward.

While the micromobility trend hasn’t exploded in South America,

the region is working on developing its micromobility presence,
most notably in Sao Paulo, Brazil — South America’s largest city.

The Micromobility Revolution 25

TOP MICROMOBILITY STARTUPS JOIN FORCES IN BRAZIL
One of the micromobility startups within South America was
Brazil-based Yellow, founded in 2017. The dockless bike and
scooter sharing service raised one of the largest Series A
financings in South American history, at $63M.

In 2019, Yellow merged with Grin — an e-scooter startup based in

Mexico City and backed by Y Combinator — to form Grow Mobility.
However, the company has struggled to find a sustainable
business model, according to Reuters. In June, Grow Mobility was
acquired by investor Felipe Henriquez.
Other competitors operating in South America include Colombia-
based Cosmic Go, which allows people to rent cars as well as
e-scooters, mopeds, and bikes, and Madrid-based Movo, which
has expanded internationally to several South American countries,
setting up fleets of e-scooters within Colombia, Peru, and Chile.

The Micromobility Revolution 26

MANY OF SOUTH AMERICA’S PUBLIC BIKE PROGRAMS
ARE FREE
It is interesting to note that most public bike-sharing programs
within South America are completely free to use, aside from
Brazil’s public programs.
For example, Medellin, Colombia has had a public bike-sharing
program since 2011 — the first to be created in South America.
The EnCicla Bike Share System offers residents and tourists of
Medellin with access to more than 1,000 free bicycles.
Buenos Aires, Argentina has a public bike-sharing system
known as EcoBici that has been expanding since 2010. EcoBici
is completely free to all residents and tourists. The city is also
constructing more bike lanes as they continue to roll out bikes
and stations — once the expansion is complete, Buenos Aires will
have 200 stations, 3,000 free bicycles, and 250km of bike lanes
spanning the city.

The Micromobility Revolution 27

San Lorenzo, Argentina also launched a free bike-sharing program
in 2016, called Biciudad, run by the San Lorenzo Government in an
effort to reduce the number of motor vehicles in the city.

Other free public bike systems within South America include

BiciQuito in Quito, Ecuador and Movete in Montevideo, Uruguay.

This abundance of public programs could be a hindrance to

micromobility startups’ profitability in South America, as the public
may often choose the free alternative. Therefore, startups focusing
on e-scooters could see more success within the region.

The Micromobility Revolution 28

Investors direct attention to opportunity
in Europe

Micromobility is not a new concept throughout Europe. In fact,

European cities are some of the first to offer shared bicycles as
a public service, in addition to already high ownership levels. In
Denmark, for example, 90% of the population owns a bike while
just 56% own a car.

Amid the pandemic, European cities such as Bogotá, Barcelona,

Berlin, and Rome have also closed off streets to cars for bikes,
scooters, and pedestrians.

Across Europe broadly, the bicycle market was estimated at nearly

$14.8B in 2016, and is expected to grow at an annual growth
rate of 5.5% until 2022. Europe’s car market, for comparison,
is expected to grow by just 1.7% until 2024, according to the
European Cyclists Federation.

The French city of La Rochelle launched a bike-sharing program

back in 1974, and is still in use today. The Velib in Paris, replaced
in 2018 by the Velib Metropole, was one of the biggest public bike-
share programs outside of China. It has since become the model
for a properly implemented bike-share system.

JCDecaux, the largest outdoor advertising company in the world,

was the foundation of many self-service bike rental schemes that
offer thousands of bicycles across many European nations today,
including Paris, Brussels, Dublin, Luxembourg, Vienna, and Valencia.

The Micromobility Revolution 29

SCOOTERS GAIN POPULARITY IN EUROPE
As European countries prepare to ban production of gasoline and
diesel vehicles in the near future, a rise in the usage of electric
vehicles seems inevitable. Already, around 12.6M cars in Europe
are being or will be affected by restrictions on fossil fuel cars,
according to Berylls.

Source: Bloomberg

The Micromobility Revolution 30

In order to make cities more bike- and pedestrian-friendly, the
UK has already committed £250M ($300M) as an emergency
fund to construct new bike lanes and wider pavements, out of a
£2B cycling and walking package. It has also made steps toward
legalizing e-scooters in the country.
Scooter sharing began amassing popularity in Europe in late
2018, but companies lately have seen waves of consolidation.
In March 2018, Daimler and BMW merged their urban mobility
companies into a single holding company. The company includes
Hive, an electric kick scooter rental company that operates
across Europe.

Source: Free Now

Other competitors include Ford-owned Spin, which began its

expansion into Europe in June, and Voi, which recently partnered
with ride-hailing app Free Now, another subsidiary of the
Daimler/BMW holding company, to expand its reach.
In addition, many US-based companies have flocked to the
European market as well, including Lime and Bird.

The Micromobility Revolution 31

So far, Lime has deployed its fleets across 20 countries in Europe,
but had to suspend operations amid Covid-19. In May, Uber
offloaded Jump, its electric bike sharing unit, to Lime — lobbing
nearly 80% off of Lime’s valuation in the process.
Bird started its Europe launch in Paris in late 2018 and quickly
became popular, with over 50,000 rides after only 2 months. In
January 2020, Bird acquired German rival Circ. Its scooters can
be found operating across Portugal, Belgium, the UK, France,
Austria, Spain, and Switzerland, though have also largely been
pulled due to the coronavirus crisis.

The Micromobility Revolution 32

MONEY BEGINS TO POUR IN
In the past few years, investors have taken note of the
opportunity e-scooters present in Europe, where cities have
denser populations and far more bike lanes than most American
cities. European-based companies have attracted funding in an
effort to compete against the US-based companies swooping
into the market.
Electric scooter company Voi Technology has raised more than
$160M in its fundraising rounds to date since its August 2018
launch. The Swedish startup has secured investments from
venture funds such as Balderton Capital, Vostok New Ventures,
Project A, and Creandum.
Voi offers its e-scooters in cities across Sweden, Denmark, Spain,
Portugal, Finland, and France. In May, Voi poached Bird UK’s chief
to head its UK, Ireland, and Benelux operations. It also recently
partnered with France-based ridesharing startup BlaBlaCar to
offer BlaBla Ride scooters in France.
Berlin-based e-scooter startup Tier Mobility has raised more
than $117M to date, and is currently active in 8 countries in
Europe. The company says it is the first fully climate-neutral
micromobility company. Tier has launched in 5 new cities amid
the pandemic, and says it plans to continue its expansion in the
coming weeks.

Source: Tier Mobility

The Micromobility Revolution 33

Micromobility yet to take off in Africa

With limited infrastructure in place to support bicycles and

scooters, most of Africa’s cities have yet to see any kind of
micromobility programs. But with the help of organizations like the
UN pushing programs forward, the continent could eventually see
some change.
Also, as cities across Africa continue to build up their
infrastructure, bike and scooter-sharing could become a more
viable option for its citizens. So far, Morocco and Egypt are leading
the way when it comes to micromobility programs.

The Micromobility Revolution 34

THE UN GIVES A HELPING HAND
Marrakech, Morocco, was the first city in Africa to launch a
citywide bike-sharing program in 2016. Medinabike is supported
by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization
(UNIDO), the Global Environment Facility (GEF), and is run by the
Environment Ministry of the Kingdom of Morocco. Medinabike
has 300+ bikes available for public use across Marrakech.
In the spring of 2018, the United Nations Environment Program
partnered with Mobike to launch a bike-sharing scheme for the
UN’s Nairobi, Kenya, compound. Employees and visitors may
use these bicycles for free and they don’t require an app to be
unlocked. This bike-sharing scheme was showcased during
Africa Clean Mobility Week, in an effort to show how bike-sharing
programs can be used across Africa as an environmentally
friendly option for transportation.

Source: Mobike

Cairo, Egypt, has also launched a public bike share program in

May 2018, called “Sekketak Khadra,” which roughly translates
to “your road is green.” Cairo’s government partnered with the
UN Human Settlements Program (UNHABITAT) to set up several
hundred bikes across Egypt’s capital.

The Micromobility Revolution 35

SOME AFRICAN STARTUPS BEGIN TO EMERGE
French bike company Smoove is the supplier behind the
Medinabike program in Marrakech.
The company has a 5-year contract in place with the city’s
government. Smoove also won a bid to launch a fleet of shared
bicycles in Lagos, Nigeria, in 2018. As of yet, however, it seems
no progress has been made on this project, possibly due to poor
road infrastructure within the city.
Baddel is the first electric bike-sharing startup in North Africa,
headquartered in Cairo, Egypt. The company has launched a
fleet of 101 electric bikes and 15 stations in the resort town of El
Gouna. Baddel has plans to eventually launch more fleets of its
e-bikes across all of North Africa.
In Nigeria, regulations have made it difficult for bike-hailing
startups to flourish. Bike-hailing is similar to ride-hailing, where
people can hitch rides on-demand via apps — just on a bicycle,
instead of a car. ORide, Max.ng, and Gokada were emerging
startups that offered bike-hailing services, but were forced to
pivot when Lagos outright banned motorbike-hailing in February.
Max.ng had previously raised $8M from Novastar Ventures and
Yamaha, among others. Gokada, which laid off approximately
80% of its workforce after the ban, had previously raised $14M
from investors including Adventure Capital, Rise Capital, and CRE
Venture Capital. Unlike other bike hailing companies like MAX
and OPay, Gokada had only one market (Lagos) and offered only
one service (motorbike hailing).

The Micromobility Revolution 36

Challenges the micromobility world faces

While the micromobility trend continues to grow worldwide, there

are still a number of challenges hindering complete adoption,
including limited infrastructure, lack of regulation, citywide bans,
and theft.

CITY INFRASTRUCTURE
If a city lacks the proper infrastructure such as sufficient bike
lanes, adoption of shared bicycles and scooters becomes
difficult and even dangerous to the public. This is one reason
micromobility has yet to take off in countries within Africa, as well
as in India.
Many of Africa’s cities are simply not bike-friendly, lacking the proper
bike-specific infrastructure for people to safely cycle. At present,
riding bikes and scooters across African cities is often too dangerous.
In South Africa, for instance, cycling is either seen as an elitist sport
for the wealthy or as a mode of transport reserved for the poor.
As a result, most South Africans have very little interest in cycling
around their cities. In Johannesburg, for example, cycling only
accounts for a microscopic 0.2% of all trips taken within the city.

The Micromobility Revolution 37

Source: The Guardian

Until countries can set up proper infrastructure, it is unlikely that the

micromobility trend will spread across the continent the way it has been
able to in other parts of the world.
The same goes for India — the infrastructure is still largely unsuitable
for individuals to safely operate bicycles and scooters on the roads.
However, the government is currently working on initiatives to improve
conditions for cyclists thanks to the Smart Cities Mission. (Read our
explainer on smart cities for more.)

The Micromobility Revolution 38

PROFITABILITY
Though many micromobility companies raked in millions of
dollars through investors, many are still struggling to achieve
sustainable profitability — especially as demand free falls amid
the pandemic.

Ofo is still dealing with cash flow problems as it still needs to pay
supplies and keep operations running. The company is now on the
brink of bankruptcy, and millions of users have applied for refunds
of their $14 deposits. To cut costs, Ofo has retreated from most of
its foreign markets to focus solely on China.

Even pre-pandemic, Bird faced profitability troubles. Bird’s profit

margin is 30%, according to numbers released by its founder. In
an effort to improve these margins, Bird has changed its pricing
structure, even doubling its per-minute fee in some cities.

In October 2019, Bird raised an additional $275M, announcing its

strategic shift to unit economics, and in January 2020, it raised
$75M more. But questions remain over how these unit economics
numbers were calculated. A March 2019 Quartz analysis
suggested that each Bird scooter loses $293 for the company.

As of April 2020, the company has laid off 1,400 employees.

Given the early stages of the micromobility industry, companies

are still searching for ways to achieve profitability and
sustainability.

The Micromobility Revolution 39

REGULATION
Though many micromobility companies raked in millions of As
dockless bikes and scooters remain a relatively novel concept,
most cities do not have proper regulations in place for how these
programs are allowed to run, leaving governments scrambling
to figure out how to deal with the sudden appearance of fleets of
bikes and scooters popping up around their cities.

With this massive influx of companies rushing to establish their

own ride-share systems within a city, various cities have begun
discussing laws to regulate the establishment and usage of these
bike and scooter systems.

However, while some cities are celebrating their successful

launches, others are banning these companies from operating,
citing safety out of concern for the chaos they bring to the streets.

The Chinese government has been creating new regulations

to help control the emerging micromobility market, including
punishing individuals that leave shared bikes outside of permitted
areas or vandalize the bicycles.

Chinese cities have also been rapidly impounding bikes by the

thousands. In Shanghai, the Municipal Transportation Bureau
ordered bike-sharing companies to refrain from releasing any
more bikes within the already oversaturated city in 2017.

With the speed and unpredictability of scooters zooming by on

sidewalks or randomly placed in the streets, some European cities
like Paris are banning them on sidewalks as cautionary steps
to prevent scooter collisions with pedestrians. Barcelona has
taken the extra step to ban the use of shared electronic scooters
completely. Electric scooters are currently also banned on public
streets and sidewalks in the UK.

The Micromobility Revolution 40

Luckily for e-scooter-sharing companies, these laws may change
as companies work with cities to better integrate micromobility
systems into city life. Bird, Lime, Voi, and Tier are looking to launch
trials in the UK as early as June 2020 — brought forward from
the initial timeline of 2021 as the British government eases the
Covid-19 lockdown. Bird and Lime have also been lobbying for
a change of laws enforced since 1835 that has prevented their
growth into the UK.

North America has much stricter regulations in comparison to

Asia, which means micromobility startups cannot grow quite as
rapidly as they did in China. For example, companies must obtain
permits and go through legislative processes before they can roll
out their bikes and scooters across most cities in the US.

If they don’t, they can face high fines and wind up banned from
cities, like Bird and Lime were banned from San Francisco after
they placed hundreds of scooters on the streets without the city’s
permission. Overall, however, the regulations can be beneficial to
cities and startups alike, as they prevent companies from growing
unsustainably fast.

Source: Curbed.com.

The Micromobility Revolution 41

HARDWARE HEALTH
Fierce competition between micromobility startups has led to
the flood of millions of dockless bicycles across the streets of
major cities like Beijing and Shanghai, which has resulted in many
problems.

As bikes break, companies often don’t have the manpower in

place to fix them in a timely manner, resulting in frustrated users
having to test several bikes before finding one that works properly.
Moreover, as companies that expanded too quickly go out of
business, their bicycle supplies wind up going to waste in massive
bicycle “graveyards” all over China.

Source: The Atlantic

The vandalism and theft of bikes and scooters has become a

major barrier to many new micromobility companies. This may not
be as damaging for larger companies (that can afford to redesign
their hardware) as it is for smaller startups that could be driven
out of business as a result.

The Micromobility Revolution 42

For example, Gobee.bike, a dockless bike-share service, had to
abandon its efforts in France completely in February 2018 as it saw
thousands of their bikes damaged or stolen. For the same reason,
it had already ceased services in Brussels earlier in the year.

In addition, 80% of bikes from Paris’s Velib bike-share program

have been reportedly stolen or damaged — some have been even
found on black markets in Eastern Europe and northern Africa.

Furthermore, Bird was plagued by theft in Mexico City and Chile

— causing thousands of dollars of losses a day.

Micromobility companies therefore must deal with the expenses

associated with replacing stolen hardware as well as hire enough
manpower to repair damaged ones. Both Bird and Lime have
stated that their electric scooters tend to last one to two months
before having to be replaced — if even that. A dataset released by
Bird found that the average life span was just 28.8 days.

In an effort to increase their lifespan, Bird upgraded to a more

durable “Bird Zero” model in 2018, featuring solid-core tires.
These models now account for more than 75% of Bird’s fleet,
according to its founder.

The Micromobility Revolution 43

In general, micromobility companies are looking at new
prototypes, tweaking shapes, sizes, and wheel arrangements
for vehicles to serve different transportation needs and comfort
levels. Seated scooters and hybrids of mopeds and e-bikes,
which offer more stability and comfort for passengers, may gain
more traction as people look for a more comfortable alternative
compared to kick scooters. Ultimately, models that prove to be
sustainable, more durable, and safer for riders will likely win out.

The Micromobility Revolution 44

WEATHER
For cities with harsher climates, like those in northern Europe,
adoption of shared bikes and scooters is not as viable. In the
rain and snow, conditions become dangerous and accidents
skyrocket. Plus, demand simply decreases when it is too cold to
use unenclosed vehicles.

Many scooter sharing companies are moving towards offering

more durable fleets to make riding safer in inclement weather.

Skip has even been giving away branded winter gloves and hats to
its users in Washington, DC during the cold winter months.

But, ultimately, when weather conditions are too severe, shared

scooter and bike companies might be forced to take their fleets off
the streets and potentially lose precious profits.

The Micromobility Revolution 45

Despite challenges, future
of micromobility looks bright

As with any emerging industry, micromobility companies offering

the relatively new service of shared bikes and scooters to the
world have some bumpy roads ahead as they face numerous
challenges across the space.
While some companies may fail along the way, the companies that
do survive will likely thrive in this multi-billion-dollar market, as
they provide urbanites with a viable solution to their transportation
woes and offer a greener alternative to cars. Covid-19 has
accelerated the potential consolidation of the space, but also
driven demand in a time where one-rider, open-air transportation
solutions are highly desirable.
Of course, much of this is dependent on geography, and whether
cities or urban settings can accommodate these methods of
transportation successfully.
But with an increasing number of investors pouring enormous
amounts of capital into the micromobility industry, we can expect
to see more bicycles and scooters on the streets of cities all over
the globe moving forward.

The Micromobility Revolution 46

This report was created with data from CB Insights’ emerging
technology insights platform, which offers clarity into emerging
tech and new business strategies through tools like:

• Earnings Transcripts Search Engine & Analytics to get an

information edge on competitors’ and incumbents’ strategies

• Patent Analytics to see where innovation is happening next

• Company Mosaic Scores to evaluate startup health, based on

our National Science Foundation-backed algorithm

• Business Relationships to quickly see a company’s

competitors, partners, and more

• Market Sizing Tools to visualize market growth and spot the

next big opportunity

If you aren’t already a client, sign up for a free trial to learn more
about our platform.

The Micromobility Revolution 47

WHERE IS ALL THIS DATA FROM?

The CB Insights platform

has the underlying data
included in this report

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR FREE