Mobike, the popular bike-sharing scheme, released the latest version of its bikes yesterday, with a range of updated features to improve comfort, safety and convenience.
The new version has an adjustable seat, disc brakes and a basket. Previously, only Mobike Lite, a version more similar to conventional bikes, had a basket.
"We've heard some complaints from taller riders that the fixed seat height is not very comfortable, so the new version provides 15 centimeters for adjustment," said Yang Zhongjie, a vice president with the company.
"Now people 1.8 meters tall can also place their legs more comfortably when riding the new bikes."
According to the company, it has now users from more than 100 countries and areas. The service is now available in Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Chengdu. Most of the foreign users are based in Shanghai.
The company declined to reveal the exact number of the foreign users.
Yang said the interface of the app on the bike sets automatically to English if the user's mobile phone is in English, which made it more friendly to foreign users.
Another officer with the company, Judy Zhai, said the service owed its success with foreign visitors and expats living in China in part to the popularity overseas of cycling as exercise and as environmentally friendly.
But the increasing popularity among all users of sharing programs such as Mobike and ofo is causing an increasing problem — illegal parking, especially around Metro stations. Too many bikes are being parked in nearby lanes, clogging them up and creating an eyesore.
The city's Metro police recently asked the major bike-sharing program operators to educate their users to park bikes within white lines or under designated parking spaces for non-motor vehicles. They also said operators should tell them of plans to increase the number of bikes near a station so the authorities could arrange extra parking.
