Only a week after Uber's acquisition of JUMP bikes and decision to integrate the e-bike rentals into its ride-hailing app, two other local players are following suit with a partnership of their own.
While not exactly as integrated as Uber and JUMP's plan, ride-hailing service Via will now offer a bundle deal with Mobike, a dockless bicycle startup, for its four-week subscription plans. For both their $109 commuter pass and $159 all-access pass, Via riders will also get a 30-day Mobike pass.
Shanghai-based Mobike launched in the District in September as a part of the city's six-month dockless bike pilot program. Washington is Mobike's first U.S. city. Via arrived in D.C., its third city of operation, in late 2016. The ride-hailing service offers rides starting at $2.15, and it only offers a carpooling option with pick-up and drop-off locations at convenient locations for the route (They might not pick you up from your front door, but they could pick you up a block or two down the street).
"We are excited to partner with Mobike, a leader in dockless bikesharing, to offer the first multi-modal rideshare and bikeshare bundled pass," said Alex Lavoie, Via's U.S. general manager, in a statement. "Via and Mobike are committed to providing smart and affordable alternative transportation options that offer D.C. residents more choices to ditch single-occupancy car trips and reduce traffic and congestion in our cities."
Now, while the announcement paints this deal as a first-of-its-kind bundle, this isn't a unique partnership pairing. Just last week, Uber and JUMP announced they would integrate JUMP bikes into Uber's ride-hailing services, alongside a few public transportation options. And as Uber ups JUMP bike's presence from 200 bikes around city to 400 in the next few weeks, it's likely that the offerings will only grow from there.
"Having e-bikes available on a dockless basis in cities in a responsible way is going to allow more and more people to move around cities in ways that are efficient and that don’t cause traffic," said Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi at an event with D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser last Wednesday. "Uber is going to be about more than just hailing a car, but about moving from point A to B so that it’s affordable and it’s responsible."
