A Bus-Powering, Rider-Paying Bike Share System

Posted by: Nate Berg

16 July 2009 - 11:00am

A new city bike sharing design concept not only gives people access to bikes, but also provides power for the local bus system and even pays riders to do it.

The design concept was created by Chiyu Chen, a design student at London's Royal College of Art.

"Users check out specially designed bikes from a locking station using an ID card. Inside the bikes is a system that stores kinetic energy generated from braking. Riders go where they need to, and when they’re finished, bring the bike back to the locking station. Locking up the bike transfers the energy generated by the trip into the city grid – or, as Chen envisions, into a hybrid bus system."

Full Story: Bike sharing that creates energy – and pays you to ride?

Source: The Christian Science Monitor, July 16, 2009