Mumbai: Bike-sharing facility suspended during lockdown resumes service again

The MyByk services were inaugurated in February amid plans to expand the network to other Metro Rail stations. The Metro-1 corridor, which stretches between Versova and Ghatkopar via Andheri, was restarted on October 19

The public bike-sharing facility from Jagruti Nagar Metro Rail station, which was suspended because of the lockdown restrictions that was enforced from the end of March in a bid to contain the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak, was restarted on Sunday.

Bicycle service for the last mile connectivity was lauched at Jagruti Metro station in Mumbai in February this year. (Satyabrata Tripathy/HT file)

Commuters, who travel by Metro rail, can ride the bikes for Rs 2 per hour.

The MyByk services were inaugurated in February amid plans to expand the network to other Metro rail stations. The Metro-1 corridor, which stretches between Versova and Ghatkopar via Andheri, was restarted on October 19.

Arjit Soni, founder of MyByk, said, “We will be sanitising the bikes and their grips daily. However, users are urged to sanitise their hands before and after using the bikes.”

Soni said that around 100 bikes would also be available at the Jagruti Nagar Metro Rail station. “Bikes are the safest commute option for first and last-mile connectivity because of the prevailing Covid-19 pandemic,” he added.

MyByk won a mobility challenge launched by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) and other agencies, including Mumbai Metro One Private Limited (MMOPL), last year.

MMRDA, along with Yulu bikes, has recently started public bike-sharing services at the Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) in Mumbai.