According to the surging news reporter, it was found that recently, Hello Bicycle, Didi Qingju and other bicycle brands have adjusted their prices in Chengdu, Guangzhou, Wuhan and other cities, and the charging standard has been adjusted from 1.5 yuan for the first 15 minutes to 1.5 yuan for the first 10 minutes on weekdays, and the starting fee for weekends and holidays has also been adjusted from 1.8 yuan for the first 15 minutes to 1.8 yuan for the first 10 minutes, and 1 yuan for the last 15 minutes.
Shared bicycles in many places welcome "disguised price adjustment"
Based on this, the surging news reporter calculated that the cost of riding for half an hour on weekdays after the adjustment rose from 2.5 yuan to 3.5 yuan, an increase of 40%; The cost of riding for one hour on holidays has increased by 35% from 2.8 yuan to 3.8 yuan.
According to screenshots of Wuhan netizens asking about Haro's official customer service on social media, the price adjustment strategy began in Wuhan on June 8, 2024.
In recent years, the bike-sharing market has been dominated by Meituan (which acquired Mobike in 2019), Hellobike and Didi's Qingju Bike. The first to enter the sharing market were Mobike and Ofo Little Yellow Bike, which once occupied about 95% of the market.
In response to the price adjustment, the surging news reporter called the manual customer service of Hello Bicycle on July 29, and the customer service said that the billing standard varies according to the city and time period, and the unlocking page will display the city's riding billing rules according to the positioning, which can be viewed before riding. Qingju Bicycle's customer service said online that Qingju Bicycle is billed according to time, and the billing rules are composed of starting price, duration fee and dispatch fee. City billing rules are different, users can click on the Home of Didi Chuxing APP to understand.
A bicycle-sharing industry insider told The Paper on July 29 that the pricing of each city is not simply set according to the city level, but is more affected by operational investment. The vehicle turnover in each city is different, and the corresponding operating costs and market positioning are also different, so differentiated pricing strategies will be adopted.
According to the surging news reporter previously learned from the bike-sharing company, the bike-sharing business was used many years ago to keep up with the service, and it was not only the bicycle that supported the user's riding, but also the large number of scheduling and maintenance efforts made by the bicycle operation and maintenance teams in various cities. A considerable part of the expenditure of bicycle enterprises is used to maintain and improve the work efficiency and quality of the road operation and maintenance team, the overall trend of this industry is the refinement and intelligence of operation and maintenance services, the normal operation of enterprises, to ensure that the quality of service is improved simultaneously, and the benefits are all parties in society, including users and cities.
This time, some insiders of bike-sharing companies also pointed out that the price adjustment is mainly due to the relatively high operating costs in some large cities, and the price adjustment has also been reported to the competent authorities.
"The operating costs of large cities, including the iteration of vehicles, warehouse management, and labor costs for operation and maintenance, are much higher than those in small cities." The above-mentioned industry insiders pointed out that the operation cycle of shared bicycles is usually three years, but in large cities, due to the greater demand for riding, the rate of vehicle wear and tear is also significantly faster, and some vehicles need to be replaced in advance in less than three years. At the same time, as the management becomes more and more refined, the requirements for urban supervision are getting higher and higher, and the manpower and material resources that need to be equipped are also increasing.
The above-mentioned person also said that in recent years, there have been many new vehicles in various places, and some places even require full replacement. On the one hand, this is to ensure the user's riding experience and continue to optimize and upgrade the product; On the other hand, the new car is also more in line with the requirements of urban supervision and refined operation. These new and upgraded models, as well as the upgrading of staffing and auxiliary facilities, are better than in the past, and will inevitably be reflected in the cost.
The Paper reporter observed on social media that many netizens did not specifically understand the price of the ride before unlocking the ride, and were surprised by the sudden price increase when they saw the settlement price without knowing the price adjustment. Some netizens recently said that "it is more expensive than buses and subways", "riding 10 kilometers in an hour is 0.55 yuan per kilometer, which is basically the same as driving", and "silently making the workers have an extra cost".
However, on the whole, the frequency of price adjustment of shared bicycles in recent years is not particularly large. Previously, some insiders of shared bicycle companies revealed to the surging news that the revenue model of shared bicycles is mainly based on selling cards and charging for a single ride, and the operation and service system of shared bicycle companies are optimized, which needs financial support behind them, and the price of shared bicycles can also provide better services for consumers.
The changed billing standard of green oranges in Chengdu
From the perspective of the industry, since 2019, shared bicycles have basically entered the era of riding for at least 1.5 yuan for 30 minutes. In 2022, the price of package cards/cycling cards will be adjusted to the same level, and the price increase of cycling cards will be between 40% and 50%, and since then, there will be some price adjustments on holidays of different brands and different regions. However, the price increases in the past five years may improve the profitability of bike-sharing companies. Previously, a number of industry insiders had told the surging news reporter that the operation and service system of shared bicycle companies need financial support behind the optimization, and the price increase of shared bicycles can also provide better services for consumers.
"For bike-sharing companies, price increases can further optimize the financial structure and help companies achieve profitability as soon as possible." Internet analyst Ding Daoshi told the surging news reporter on July 29 that the future of shared bicycle profitability will become the main theme, the period of burning money and expansion has passed, and the model itself can make money after the shared bicycle returns to a reasonable business stage. Bicycle sharing not only meets the rigid needs of users for convenient travel within a specific few kilometers, but also belongs to green and low-carbon travel, and the policy is encouraging.
Previously, Yang Lei, the founder of Hellogo, said in 2018 that Hellogo had achieved breakeven. Yang Lei said at the time that the operation and maintenance cost of each car is about 3 cents, the depreciation cost is 6 cents, the average daily income of the car has exceeded 1 yuan, and the net profit has been realized in more than 100 cities. Yang Lei also previously said that bicycle sharing is a very rigid business and cannot rely on long-term subsidies. Hellogo has a lot of room for growth in charging, "not only can make money, but also can achieve large-scale profitability".
"The pricing of shared bicycles is a market economic behavior, and the public bicycle many years ago is not the same concept, and the price depends on the market to regulate. All price increases are usually subject to a certain amount of controversy, and companies in the industry are also called on to 'take their time' in terms of price increases and price adjustment coverage, so that consumers can be more acceptable. Ding Daoshi further said that bicycle sharing mainly relies on the main basic service business to earn income. Previously, business models such as advertising, games, and e-commerce have been launched, but they have not been successfully implemented and explored on a large scale. In recent years, a variety of "life services" have been added, such as charging and running errands, and efforts have been made to seek new growth points.