The Croatian public bicycle system Nextbike, which has more than 20,000 customers and 450 registered bicycles in Croatia, will soon launch a public bicycle system in Vukovar in the very east of Croatia, and in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina at the beginning of next year, said the company's CEO Krešimir Dvorski on Poslovni.hr on August 26, 2017.
"Vukovar will launch on September 14th, and on September 16th we will have a bicycle race from Velika Gorica to Zagreb and back. On the 22nd or 23rd of September we will host a traditional bike ride in Zagreb, and between these dates, we will organize a free bicycle school in Zagreb and maybe somewhere else,” said Dvorski. Another dozen cities in Croatia will launch the Nextbike public bicycle system next year.
Dvorski further adds that there are currently 6,000 registered users in Bosnia and Herzegovina and 20,000 in Croatia.
Zagreb, the first Croatian city to introduce the public bicycle system currently has 21 stations - and when the company first started, there were only six. Unfortunately, however, the number of bicycles still hasn’t changed.
“We still have 100 bicycles because we have been waiting for four years for the city to announce a new tender. Without the right cooperation with the City, which includes financial support, we can’t expand," added Dvorski.
Zagreb would be best equipped with 500 bicycles and 50 stations with the city's help, according to Dvorski. There are currently 450 bicycles and 75 stations in Croatia in total, including the new one in Vukovar.
Nextbike will introduce new pricing options, ranging from price per hour, per week, and an annual pass which will be slightly more expensive than it is now, but with the potential of more services offered.
It is important to note that no Nextbike bicycles or their parts have ever been stolen, and no accidents involving Nextbike bicycles have been reported - making the service the safest mode of public transport in Croatia.
Nextbike is also one of the most socially responsible business in Croatia after winning the Croatian Employers' Association (HUP) award in the small business and environmental protection category with their project "Reducing CO2 emissions".
Bravo to Nextbike!
