French engineering company Egis has secured a contract with the Krakow municipality in Poland, for the operation of the public bike scheme in the city.

According to the terms of the contract, Egis will be responsible for replacing the existing scheme with a new one and also ensuring continuity through the integration of the current users’ database.

The eight-year contract includes an implementation period of three months after which the new generation bikes will be deployed progressively to reach 1,500 active elements by April next year.

The future Krakow bike scheme will make use of new technology developed by Social Bicycles where the intelligence for renting and returning a bike is located on the bike rather than at the station.

The new technology will improve user experience as they have the flexibility to park the bicycle near the bike station in case the bike station is full. The user can book the bike in advance through a mobile application.

All bikes are equipped with a GPS and an accelerometer, which allows the operator to track each bike in real-time, while lowering vandalism rates subsequently.

"By eliminating the problem of parking or finding a bike, the scheme presents a healthy alternative or a complement to traditional commuting."

Egis Projects chief executive officer Rik Joosten said: “The city of Krakow is particularly attractive for the deployment of this technology, since the city suffers significant congestion issues.

"By eliminating the problem of parking or finding a bike, the scheme presents a healthy alternative or a complement to traditional commuting.

“As operator, we will also ensure that tourist user access to the scheme is optimised. Krakow hosts almost 10,000,000 tourists every year.”

Image: Green bikes in a city. Photo: courtesy of Egis.