Adverts at bicycle stations to generate cash for Panchkula MC

The civic body has invited bids from companies that wish to advertise at stations set up for public bicycle sharing system, say officials

After its public bicycle sharing (PBS) system launched in August has gained popularity, the Panchkula municipal corporation (MC) is now planning to generate revenue from advertisements at bicycle dock stations in the city. For this, the civic body is inviting bids from companies for advertisements.

Public bicycle dock station in Sector 15, Panchkula. (Sant Arora/HT)

The MC has reserved 60 per cent rights for advertising at bicycle stations, while the remaining rights will stay with Yaana, the private firm running the bicycle sharing project. MC officials said they are the first in the country to have reserved 60 per cent advertising rights at the bicycle stations. An official from Yaana said they have 100 per cent rights over advertisement in other states, but the Panchkula civic body had retained 60 per cent rights in an agreement.

Initially, the civic body maintained 200 cycles at 20 stations, of which the company has the rights for eight stations and has already mounting advertisements at a few places. Commissioner MC, Rajesh Jogpal, said the rights were reserved through a draw.

The PBS system, a first-of-its-kind in the tricity, was launched under Smart City project. The facility took little time to become popular with residents who can be seen renting bicycles from dock stations in the city at Rs 5 for 30 mins after registering themselves through a mobile-based application.

Equipped with global positioning system (GPS), the bicycles are operative for 14 hours, from 6am to 8pm. They come with smart locks and a feature for cashless transactions through an app controlled by Android and iOS applications. With requests from residents to set up more dock stations, the MC, in its second phase of the project, is planning to set up more docks at Mansa Devi Complex and trans-Ghaggar sectors (Sector 23 to 28).