Bloom or Gloom?
Cycling Future of Los Angeles, Hong Kong and Guangzhou
Chu Fun Fun, Kristie
The degree of Bachelor of Science (Environmental Management & Technology)
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Under supervision of Professor Robert Gottlieb, Urban & Environmental Policy
Occidental College
August, 2013
Introduction
The growing popularity of biking is a worldwide phenomenon. You can easily spot
cyclists carefully riding next to a nervous driver and the atmosphere becomes even more
intense when they know that they co-exist on a narrow road. Why are they so conscious
about the existence of each other? What can do done to ease the mutual discomfort? Is it
limited to city setting?
This study is then started to have an overview of biking in three megacities: Hong
Kong, Guangzhou, China and the city of Los Angeles, CA United States.1 The ultimate goal is
to inform concerning parties the current bike development in the three areas, so as to help
formulate a bike future for each specific megacity.
The three cities chosen in this article are all densely populated and are known for
their traffic in different aspects, though may not be a sound one. In terms of bike related
issues, Los Angeles is actively preparing its bike share program and planning its bicycle
future. Hong Kong, regardless of the infamous polluted air due to its highly motorized
transportation system, has been neglecting the beneficial effects on air of bikes and puts off
the mass bike development. Guangzhou, the only city in this paper with existing bike-share
programs, has shown great efforts in integrating the public transportation system with bike
lanes. Recent data is analyzed and trends are identified regarding cycling and policies as
well as the plausibility of a bicycle revolution in each city will be discussed.
1
According to United Nation, megacities constitute a special group of cities of 10 million or more inhabitants.
Guangzhou, has the highest population among the three cities (Population> 11million in 2012), has included in the
list ever since 2007 . Meanwhile, with another definition, cities with population density (PD, persons/km2) over
2000 persons/km2, are defined as megacities. Along these lines, the city of Los Angeles (PD=3,125) and Hong Kong
(PD=6,540) are one of them.
1. Demographics and geographical features
Los
Angeles
Hong Kong
Guangzhou
Land
Area
(km2)
Population
1,302
3,792,6212
1,104 7,173,9006
7,434 11,114,20010
Population
GDP
Density
(USD
(persons/km2) billion)
3,1253
7324
6,5407
2,89211
2298
17312
GDP
Per
Capita
56,900
No. of
private
cars
licensed
1,977,8035
32,636
415,0009
13
13,542
1,700,00014
Vehicle
per
person
0.52
0.058
0.153
Table 1 – Demographic information of the city of Los Angeles, Hong Kong and Guangzhou (2010-2012)
i.
Demography
As shown in Table 1, Guangzhou is the largest city among the three
megacities, with 11 million residents, almost 4 times of the population of the City of
Los Angeles and 4 million more than that of Hong Kong. Despite the highest
population, its largest land area (7,434 km2) among the three allows a lowest
population density (2,892 persons/km2). Hong Kong, with the smallest land area,
doubles the population density of Guangzhou and one of the most densely packed
city of the United State, Los Angeles.
2
http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/06/0644000.html
8,092.3 per square mile, 2010, Area=468,67 sq mile =1213.8km2
4
Mckinsey Global Institute, Urban America: US cities in the global economy, 2012
5
http://ladot.lacity.org/pdf/PDF10.pdf
6
http://www.censtatd.gov.hk/press_release/pressReleaseDetail.jsp?charsetID=1&pressRID=3102
7
http://www.gov.hk/en/about/abouthk/factsheets/docs/population.pdf
8
Special Report on Gross Domestic Product- September 2012 Census and Statistics Department
9
http://www.censtatd.gov.hk/FileManager/EN/Content_807/transport.pdf
10
廣州統計信息手冊 2012 – 廣州市統計局 2012.9
11
常住人口密度，廣州統計信息手冊 2012 – 廣州市統計局 2012.9
12
http://www.sdpc.gov.cn/dqjj/zhdt/t20110218_395825.htm, National Bureau of Statistics of China
13
Population adopted to find per capita number derived from 2010 data,
http://www.gzstats.gov.cn/tjgb/glpcgb/201105/t20110517_25227.htm
14
http://www.guangzhou.gov.cn/node_2190/node_2222/2011/07/17/1310861242366160.shtml
3
What distinguishes Los Angeles is its high car ownership. Only 7.8% of the
population lives in a household with no car (The City of Los Angeles Transportation
Profile 2009). In contrast, due to its extensive and well-connected public transport
system as well as the high cost of owning a vehicle, the vehicle per person ratio
remains the lowest in Hong Kong while one out of two persons owns a vehicle in Los
Angeles, which is 10 times higher than Hong Kong. With such a high car ownership,
the opportunity cost of switching from private motorized transportation to cycling
is higher in Los Angeles.
Guangzhou has a moderate car ownership rate which may be reflected by the
lowest GDP per capita generated and relatively higher cost of motorized vehicles.
Guangzhou citizens have to spend a larger proportion of income for vehicle
expenses. Nonetheless, from 2010 to 2011, the car ownership of Guangzhou
increased by 23.8%, in which the government foresees the burden vehicles placing
on the existing congestion problem, and thus imposed a vehicle limit act in 2012.
The policy result is satisfactory regarding the fact that, within eleven months, the
rise of number of private cars slowed down by 63%15. Although the long term
impact of the policy on transport mode is still to be determined, it suggests a greater
incentive to switch from motorized vehicles to cycling for the policies effect and
high costs of keeping a car.
15
http://news.xinhuanet.com/auto/2013-06/28/c_124925025.htm
ii.
Los Angeles
Hong Kong
Guangzhou
Climate and Landscape
Annual
Days with
precipitation(cm) precipitation
32.616
36
19
192.47
137.820
180.1524
170.225
Cold
days
517
2121
Hot days
2118
2122
Hilly relief
percentage
N/A
70%23
2726
24.427
48%28
Table 2 – Climate and landscape information of the three cities. They all have different definitions of cold days
and hot days. L.A. has the highest and lowest temperature definition for hot and cold days respectively. Data
of HK & L.A. are average number while 2012 data of GZ is used
Climate is definitely one of the decisive factors influencing the cycling levels. Rainy
or cold or hot weather is not optimal to the majority of cyclists. Among the three cities, Los
Angeles has the least average annual precipitation (32.6%) and only 36 days with
precipitation due to its Mediterranean climate. Hong Kong and Guangzhou both have
almost 6 times higher annual precipitation and 4-5 times more days with precipitation,
which shows that LA has more days that are suitable for cycling in a year than the other
two. All three cities do not snow throughout the year. Los Angeles has the fewest cold days.
Guangzhou has a more extreme climate pattern than Hong Kong and Los Angeles with the
16
The annual precipitation totals are averages based on weather data collected from 1981 to 2010 for the NOAA
National Climatic Data Center.
17
http://www.currentresults.com/Weather/California/Places/los-angeles-temperatures-by-month-average.php
The city averages just five nights annually when the temperature does drop to 40 (4.4°C) or lower.
18
Same as footnote 16, one day a year when the temperature reaches 100 , 37.8°C
The 21 days a year of highs in the 90s, (32°C+) are typically scattered from April to November, with no month
averaging more than five days.
19
http://www.hko.gov.hk/wxinfo/pastwx/ywx2012.htm
20
http://www.hko.gov.hk/wxinfo/pastwx/ywx2012.htm
21
2012 data from HK Observatory, 'Cold Day' refers to the condition with the daily minimum temperature equal to
or lower than 12.0 degrees.
22
2012 data from HK Observatory, 'Very Hot Day' refers to the condition with the daily maximum temperature
equal to or higher than 33.0 degrees.
23
70% of land arehilly to mountainous. Hong Kong Business: The Portable Encyclopedia for Doing Business With
Hong Kong, Christine Genzberger – 1994
24
http://www.tqyb.com.cn/NewTqyb/QHGB/GZGB2012.HTM
25
http://www.tqyb.com.cn/NewTqyb/QHGB/GZGB2012.HTM
26
The number is obtained based on the information of 廣州市氣候公報 2012
27
2012 data from Guangzhou Meteorological Bureau, Days>35℃,
http://www.tqyb.com.cn/NewTqyb/QHGB/GZGB2012.HTM
28
http://www.gzswdx.gov.cn/xxcshjs/201204/t20120405_36255.htm
most hot and cold days. In short, Los Angeles has the least rainy, hot and cold days and in
this aspect, it owns a most cycling-friendly climate condition. The two other cities are not
unbearable though.
Topography can also impact cycling levels. Hong Kong is the hilliest city among its
peers with 70% of its land regarded hilly or mountainous. If steep slopes and inland bodies
of water are omitted then only about 30% of the land area of the HKSAR is suitable for
cycling and this still includes major areas of reclaimed land such as Chek Lap Kok airport
and the container ports where the opportunities for cycling are very limited.29 Los Angeles
and Guangzhou are flatter, which provides topography more favorable to cycling.
29
Cycling study 2004, Transport Department, HKSAR
2. Bike mode shares
Others
1%
Mode Shares in Hong Kong
Rail
25%
Taxi
8%
Bus/Tram
55%
Private transport
11%
Figure 1 – Mode shares in Hong Kong, data source from Hong Kong In Figures 2011, Travel
Characteristics Survey 2002, Transport Department, Hong Kong. This is based on the number of
boardings by mode of transport. It includes only motorized modes for all purposes.
Mode Shares in Guangzhou
Rail
14%
Taxi
11%
Private Transport
40%
Bus
35%
Figure 2- Mode shares in Guangzhou, data Source: Guangzhou Yearbook 2010, Guangzhou Urban
Transport Report 2010. This is based on the number of journeys by main mode of transport. It
includes only motorized modes for all purposes.
Walking
3%
Commuting Mode shares in Los Angeles
Public
transportation
10%
Taxi/Motorcycle
2%
Bicycling
1%
Private vehicles
84%
Figure 3 – Commuting Mode Shares in Los Angeles, data source: The City of Los Angeles
Transportation Profile 2009
The transportation mix of the three cities varies to a large extent. In Hong Kong,
mass transit which mainly refers to rail and bus constitutes 80% of all boardings. The
extensive coverage of public transport network, competitive fare prices and high reliability
contribute to the intensive usage of mass transit. Cycling accounts for about 0.5%30 of the
daily weekday mechanized trips in Hong Kong (2004). Almost 10 years passed, statistics of
bike mode share have been updated.
Guangzhou lies in the middle ground between Hong Kong and Los Angeles. Mass transit
constitutes 49% of motorized journeys. Guangzhou has a considerable capacity to expand
the shares of public transit and biking. The most current data in 2010 shows that there is a
30
HK Transport Department,2004, Cycling Study
significant bike shares, 15.4%31, at least this is the most outstanding one among the three
cities. There are concurrently government policies limiting the number of new private
vehicles and infrastructure development for both public transit, mainly the Guangzhou Bus
Rapid Transit (BRT) and biking.
The mode shares in Los Angeles is totally reverse to Hong Kong, despite the fact that
data compared is commuting mode shares. Almost 80 percent of employed City residents
drive to work in private vehicles, while 10 percent use public transportation32. The
remaining commuters travel to work by: walking (3.2%), taking a taxi or motorcycle (1.7%)
or bicycling (0.6%). This shows the heavy reliance of private vehicles there. L.A. is a more
spread-out city where people live and work in a wide variety of neighborhoods and public
transportation is inconvenient, car ownership is seen as a necessity in getting around.
According to a study by the University of Michigan’s Transportation Research Institute33,
there is a decrease in teens with driver’s licenses which might suggest that they are
adopting alternatives of driving. We can see a great potential of promoting bike use.
Bike Guangzhou 自行车出行制约因素及改善建议 2010
http://ladot.lacity.org/about_transportation_profile.htm
33
http://business.time.com/2011/12/08/fewer-teenagers-have-drivers-licenses-because-of-gas-prices-and-theinternet/
31
32
Bike mode shares in LA, HK and GZ
40
34
Percentage of trips by bicyle
35
30
25
20
15.4
15
10
10
5
0
0.6
0.8
2009 2011
Los Angeles
0.5
2004
Hong Kong
1992 2003 2010
Guangzhou
Figure 3 - Bike mode share in LA HK and GZ over the years
Figure 3 summarizes bike mode shares derived from travel surveys in each of the
three cities over the recent two decades. Over the period of 1992 to 2003, the bike mode
share in Guangzhou actually drops by 24% due to a regional strategy aimed at gradually
reducing and restricting the number of bicycle as the city government regarded bicycles as
the culprit of the disordered and congested traffic at that time.34 From 2003 to 2011, we
see a rise from 10 to 15.4 percent bicycle shares of all trips in Guangzhou. The sharp
change was also due to government policy. The bureau reconsidered the role of cycling in
the transportation mix and finally recognized its benefits on the regional air quality and
city image and thus, re-promoting the long-neglected mode of transport – cycling.
The bike mode shares of Guangzhou are almost 20 and 30 times higher than that of
Los Angeles and Hong Kong respectively. Although the bike mode shares of Los Angeles has
remained at a low level when compared with Guangzhou, there is a 48% growth of bike
34
http://www.gztpri.com/sitecn/ReDianHuaTi/4413.html
shares in Los Angeles in 2 years from 2009 to 2011, which is a positive sign for more
extensive bike usage. The lowest bike share happens in Hong Kong (0.5%), and the
previous data which would be essential in predicting the trend is lacking, which shows the
little attention from the government and poor record of cycling.
Cycling Trip Purpose in LA, HK and GZ
80
70
60
50
Los Angeles
40
Hong Kong
30
Guangzhou
20
10
0
Commuting
Recreation
Fitness
Others
Figure 4 – cycling trip purpose in LA, HK and GZ, Data from Cycling study 2004, HKTD, The City of Los Angeles
Bicycle Plan 2010 and Bike Guangzhou – Constraints and Suggestions on bike as a transport mode(Only in
Chinese; 拜客廣州- 自行車出行制約因素及改善建議). For L.A. statistics, some bicyclists ride for multiple
reasons and therefore the numbers add up to more than 100%. Designs of the surveys vary among the cities.
Trip purposes of cycling vary considerably among the three cities. For commuting,
which includes trips to work or to school and work-related cycling trips, it accounted for 30%
in Guangzhou, which is the highest among all. Commuting trips in Hong Kong (14%) is just
half of Guangzhou’s number. And it is also worth noting that, in Hong Kong, of those people
aged 15 and over, who knew how to cycle (but had not necessarily cycled in the past 3
months), only 3.5% had cycled to work or school in the past 3 months. This directly shows
that cycling for commuting is not a common choice.35 For Los Angeles, what explains the
low commuting rate would be the long distance between workplace and home as well as
the limited public transit system.
It can be seen that over 70% of the trips were for recreation or fitness purposes in
Hong Kong. Recreational as well as the fitness purpose are also the largest share in Los
Angeles, which outcompetes commuting by a large margin. The result actually aligns with
the words from the L.A. city government that, so far, cycling is still for recreation.
Shopping purpose of Hong Kong and Guangzhou cycling trips accounts for 11% and
32% under the category of ‘Others’. This kind of utilitarian usage of cycling are not
unpopular but often bypassed when looking at the bike trip purposes. Shopping has a
tendency to be a daily trip travelling from home to market for adult women, or to be exact,
housewives in the two cities. Shopping is not included in the survey result of LA although
national U.S. figures do suggest it could be a significant opportunity since most shopping
trips are <.5 miles or 0.8 km.
35
Cycling study 2004, Transport Department, HKSAR
3. Cycling safety
No. of Cyclists involved in accident in HK
(2001-2011)
3000
2500
2000
1500
Cyclists involved in
accident
1000
500
0
20012002200320042005200620072008200920102011
Figure 5 – Number of cyclists involved in accidents in HK in 10 years. Data obtained from
Transport Department, HKSAR36
In Hong Kong, during the past decade, accidents involving bicycles increased from
782 in 1997 to 1,559 in 2006.37Just in the first eight months of 2013, 1,540 cyclists injured
in traffic accidents and there was a 10% increase than last year. Number of casualties
related to cycling rise from 1,408 in 2003 to 2,442 in 2012. The escalating cases of cycling
casualties and accidents drew huge public concerns. According to the Police representative,
many of the cyclists do not own sufficient traffic rules regarding cycling. They even did not
sense that they also have to watch the traffic lights when cycling with other vehicles and
pedestrians on the road. This can be explained by poor education and training of road
safety in Hong Kong.
36
37
http://www.td.gov.hk/filemanager/en/content_4563/f3.3.pdf
Road Traffic Accident Statistics in Hong Kong, 1997 to 2006
The city government has promised to advance cycling facilities and road design and
be diligent in checking cyclists riding on pedestrian roads and careless driving behavior. In
the first eight months 2013, the police have issued more than 7,900 summonses, which is
57% more than the statistics from the same period in last year. Other than legal charges,
education like promoting helmet use is almost unheard of in Hong Kong, which
undoubtedly helps explained the worsening safety issue. 91.1% of the biking population
reported that they did not wear helmets when riding bicycle.38 The most serious injuries
among a majority of those killed are to the head and helmet use has been estimated to
reduce head injury risk by 85 percent. There is no excuse for the government not arousing
public awareness on the use of helmet and of course, other safety precautions.
In Los Angeles, which is neither known as a city for walking nor biking, about 2.8%
of traffic fatalities are bicyclists39. Drivers in the city kill pedestrians and bicyclists at a
significantly higher rate than drivers nationally.40 County-wise, despite the fact that about
20% of all trips in Los Angeles County are on foot or by bike, but less than 1% of
transportation funding in the county goes to improvements for pedestrians and bicyclists.41
Regarding Guangzhou, concrete data about cycling accidents and fatalities have not
been found. Nonetheless, the discussion of cycling safety was particularly intense right
after the ban of motorcycles in the city in 2007. Out of the 0.79 million of motorcyclists, 19%
of them shifted to biking.42 The media claimed that the sharp increase of biking accidents is
38
Injury Survey 2008, http://www.chp.gov.hk/files/pdf/injury_survey_2008_eng_20100913.pdf
Road Safety in New York and Los Angeles: US Megacities compared with the nation
40
University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute
41
Eric Bruins, planning and policy director for the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition
42
广州市居民出行调查
39
attributed to the increase of cyclists in the city43. However, in a study of the University of
New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, which reviewed safety studies from 17 countries
and 68 cities in California, there is evidence showing that the more people bike in a
community, the less they collide with motorists. The explanation is that motorists adjust
their behavior in the presence of increasing numbers of people bicycling because they
expect or experience more people cycling.
If we assume that the media in Guangzhou was not just making random guess, then
the relationship between number of cyclists and traffic accident rate of Guangzhou would
be different from other cities in the world.
4. Cycling infrastructure
City
Length of bike lane
(miles)
Bike lane/land
area (mile/square
mile)
Los Angeles
344
Hong Kong
128.544
Guangzhou
1,03245
0.26
0.12
0.18
Table 3 – Miles of bike lanes in the three cities.
When assessing cycling infrastructure, length of bike lanes must be under
consideration as it directly reflects how extensive a biking network is. Regarding the
aggregate length of bike lane, Guangzhou has way longer bike lanes than Los Angeles and
Hong Kong. Nonetheless, we must be noted that Guangzhou owns a larger land area and
thus its relatively longer bike lane does not necessarily mean that the bike lane is the most
43
http://www.gd.xinhuanet.com/newscenter/photo/2007-02/02/content_9207976.htm
Hong Kong Cycling Study 2004
45
August 2013, http://www.ycwb.com/ePaper/ycwb/html/2011-10/03/content_1224702.htm
44
comprehensive. To have a fair discussion, ‘bike lane density’ of the three cities was
calculated by taking account the city land area.
It is found that there is more bike lane in one square mile in Los Angeles than Hong
Kong and Guangzhou. Hong Kong has the least bike lane in terms of land area. The hilly
relief of the city has played a major role in hindering the spread of bike lanes. Only about
30% of the land area of Hong Kong is suitable for cycling and this includes major area of
reclaimed land such as Chek Lap Kok airport where the opportunities of cycling is deemed
limited. Even the government in Hong Kong has been actively developing bike lanes in the
new towns (suburban or rural area), named New Territories, where we can find about 87
km of bike lane46, the capacity of elongating the total bike lane in Hong Kong is smaller than
the other two regions.
What makes Los Angeles stand out among its peers is that, there is a clear hierarchy
of the bike lane system. Out of the 344miles47of bikeways, 49 miles are bicycle paths, 167
miles are bicycle lanes and 119 miles are bicycle routes. There are separate definitions for
each kind of bikeway in the Los Angeles Bike Plan. On the other hand, bike lanes in
Guangzhou are called greenway which emphasizes the environmentally friendly
characteristic of biking.
46
47
Transportation department final report on cycling study, april 2004
LA CITY BICYCLE PLAN
5. Bike parking and integration with public transport
Bike Parking
Although Hong Kong does not have or even plan for a bike share program, its supply
of bike parking spaces are surprisingly plenty when compared to the other two cities,
which is 8 times more than Los Angeles (Over 5,000, AUG 201248) and almost 2 times of
Guangzhou (25,97149)
There are more than 40000 bike parking spaces50 in such a little city, Hong Kong.
The majority of Hong Kong’s vast bike parking is located mostly at the railway stations, in
the N.T51, an area with mainly suburban land use. This serves as an indication of cycling’s
role as an access mode for public transportation. This is aligned with the government
promotion of cycling only in New Territories for safety reasons as the region is relatively
loosely populated compared to Kowloon and Hong Kong Island. 52 The Transport
Department of Hong Kong will carry out a pilot scheme to introduce Double-deck Bicycle
Parking System (DBPS) near the Fanling and Sheung Shui MTR stations. The DBPS will be
used in Hong Kong with a view to improve the shortage of bicycle parking spaces in some
districts, though still limited to New Territories. Stage completion of the trial scheme is
scheduled to start from mid-2012 onwards.53
48
http://ladotbikeblog.wordpress.com/2012/08/17/city-of-l-a-bike-parking-map-now-online/
http://www.big5.hlj.gov.cn/zwdt/system/2010/08/12/010091003.shtml and Guangzhou Metro, Guangzhou
Metro expected 25,971 parking spaces would be set up by 2012.
50
http://gia.info.gov.hk/general/201110/19/P201110190205_0205_85528.pdf
51
http://www.legco.gov.hk/yr09-10/english/panels/tp/papers/tp0528cb1-1995-3-e.pdf
52
Population density in districts of Hong Kong included in Appendix
53
http://www.td.gov.hk/mini_site/cic/en/active-projects-studies/projects/minor-improvement.html
49
In Los Angeles, the City of Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT)
offers bicycle parking at its Metrolink Stations and Park and Ride lots which facilitates
integration of public transport. What creates an optimistic future of bike parking in the city
is the pass of the Bike Parking Ordinance which encourages more bike parking at
commercial and residential developments across the city and outlines the requirements for
these new spots.
Integration with public transport
Los Angeles
Integration of cycling with public transportation is mainly through allowing carriage
of bikes on board. In L.A., metro buses provide two bike racks on the front and have a set of
clear rules indicating the rules and the size of bikes that are allowed.54 Bikes are also
permitted on Metro Rail trains at all times and there are separate guidelines for different
lines.
Hong Kong
Bikes are prohibited on most of the bus lines, including the three major bus
operators, New World First Bus, Citybus and Kowloon Motor Bus. Even small folding bikes
are not always permitted on board55. For MTR Lines and Light Rail, as long as passengers
remove the front wheel of their bike, bikes are permitted and it is free of charge to carry a
bike56. For trains linking mainland China, bicycles can be carried as consigned luggage.
54
http://www.metro.net/bikes/bikes-metro/
http://hkcyclingalliance.org/getting-around-hk/buses
56
http://www.mtr.com.hk/eng/legal/images/mtr_by_law.pdf
55
Nevertheless, passengers have to pay for carrying a bike on board and the rate depends on
the weight of the bike. Moreover, bicycles should be carefully and securely packed
according to the conditions of travel or they might be refused.
Guangzhou
Bikes are integrated with public transport through the provision of bike parking at
stations. Moreover, the majority of the docking stations of bike sharing systems in
Guangzhou are located at or near public transportation stations such as metro lines and its
extensive BRT bus lines. This promotes the idea of using bikes available through bike share
programs to and from public transportation. Bikes are also allowed to be carried on board,
both in metro rails and buses.
6. Public bikeshare program
City
Guangzhou
Los Angeles
Service Provider
State-owned:
Bike Nation
广州公共自行车运营管理有限公司
Privately – owned:
广东旭日公共单车租赁管理有限公司
“一卡通”公司
Date of Start
August 2010
2014
Number of bicycles
5,000 +57
4,00058
Location of stations
Along BRT, railway stations,
Downtown, Hollywood, Venice,
greenways and inside residential
Westwood
area
Number of stations
About 25059
40060
Table 4 – Comparison of Guangzhou and Los Angeles bike share program
Bike sharing allows individuals convenient access to a bike without actually owning
a bike. The rationale behind bike share programs is offer an affordable transport mode for
short-distance transportation. It is not a brand new idea but a system being run since
1965.61 Out of the three cities, Guangzhou and Los Angeles first hopped on the craze of bike
sharing. While Los Angeles bike share program is created by the private sector, Guangzhou
bike share system is supported by 3 companies, 1 is under government operation and the
rest are privately owned.
The number of bikes provided by 廣州旭日 and 一卡通 are not disclosed.
http://epaper.oeeee.com/G/html/2013-07/29/content_1904485.htm
58
http://www.ladowntownnews.com/news/bike-share-program-to-roll-in-downtown/article_59f0260e-ab7e11e2-b8f5-001a4bcf887a.html
59
http://www.toptour.cn/detail/info92540.htm
60
The statistics for LA Bike share program reflects the plan of the service provider. The bike share program has not
yet launched until 2014.
61
Furness, Zack (2010). One Less Car: Bicycling and the Politics of Automobility
57
Bikes provided by 3 operators are distinguished by their color: yellow, orange and red
In Guangzhou, from the kick-start in June 2010, the bike share program system
which extended along BRT lines, main transportation node, commercial area and
residential area62 serves over 24,000 citizens per day.63 75% users of bike share program
shifted from other transportation mode. 34% shift from mechanized transportation. It is
proven that running a bike share program is able to increase bike usage and bike mode
share.64 Nonetheless, it is common to see a number of idle bikes being underutilized in bike
share stations. What explains this inefficiency of resources is the lack of alignment among
the service providers. Not to mention the difference in costs, payment methods and rules,
what causes major inconvenience is that the public can only rent or return a bike at
stations by the same company. The government, sadly, threw some excuses in combining
the three companies. A local NGO, Bike Guangzhou as well as the media plays a chief role in
check the progress of refining the whole system. In addition, the 3 operators never break –
even in their revenue. It may not be an issue to the state-owned one as it is funded by the
government, but the other two may terminate the service if they cannot sustain the
business. The recent increase in rental costs may discourage bike usage as the major users
of the program are lower-income group and bike share program is perceived by the public
as a public good serving the society. This dilemma can be solved by expanding advertising
revenue and obtaining government funding under the condition that the government
would like to pay that costs in exchange for higher bike usage.
Los Angeles bike share system, hopefully, will be launched next year after a long
haul of earning sponsorship from companies. Meanwhile, Hong Kong, whose government
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has long regarded biking as a mere recreational activity, has conducted research on the
feasibility of bike sharing in the district of highest bike usage. There is neither clear notion
nor a concrete timetable for bike share program though.
7. Cycling Promotion
Bicycle education is critical in creating a safe cycling environment and growing
bicycle usage. Educational programs are categorized into two types in terms of purpose.
One is to promote biking and road safety while another aims to equip the public with
biking skills.
Los Angeles has the most extensive bicycle educational program among the three
cities. The 2010 Bike Plan comprises a wide variety of programs teaching drivers, cyclists
and the youth road safety in respect of cycling. Besides, the city keeps an official record of
the project outcome. For instance, since the inception of the School Bicycle Safety and
Transit Education Program, the project has served millions of children. Clear budget plan
and project objectives are carefully crafted under Bike Plan. Apparently the city
government endeavored in bicycle education. The nonprofits meanwhile deliver cycling
skill courses in supplementary. In short, the Los Angeles program is appreciated,
nevertheless, making cycling mandatory in primary school curriculum, which can improves
level of road safety, should be considered.
In Hong Kong and Guangzhou, there is not any official bicycle training and
educational program run by the government. Instead, for the case of Hong Kong, the
government invests in a leading NGO, Hong Kong Cycling Association (HKCA). It sponsors
the training courses and competitions held by this NGO. HKCA is affiliated with 3465 cycling
clubs and these clubs exist to provide bicycle training and promote the sport. In the
meantime, Hong Kong Cycling Alliance functions as an advocate of road safety and arouses
public awareness on cyclists’ rights. Additionally, bicycle repair and maintenance
workshops are available too. In Guangzhou, there is no significant educational program.
The most prominent promotion party is Bike Guangzhou which conducted research on bike
usage, infrastructure, and policy and so on. It serves educational purposes and calls for
general improvement of the cycling system.
Conclusion
Coming to the end of this study, although these three cities are similar in
geographical terms, their bike development varies quite a large extent. Each of the cities is
blooming but meanwhile glooming in different assessment criteria. Favorably, there are
increasing voices stressing the importance of facilitating biking growth in all the cities. Yet,
the attitude of Hong Kong government still remains strong in its idea of keeping biking as a
recreational activity in spite of the public outcry of biking as a commuting mode, claiming it
is not safe in the city. Guangzhou bike share program does have its own obstacles to
overcome in order to raise bike usage. Los Angeles is paving its way to become a bike
friendly city with an extensive bike program. The governments should truly open their
mind, learn from peers and most importantly, listen to the opinions of various stakeholders
in attaining the best bike development. Attitude makes differences.
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