Cycling is a growing trend in Egypt. Despite the poor state of our roads and the complete lack of public spaces fit for cycling, Egyptians have been braving these circumstances and doing it nonetheless.
For everyday folk and amateur cyclists, navigating the streets of Cairo can be quite daunting. There are no spaces for cycling or dedicated bike lanes anywhere, making it somewhat of a hazard.
Drawing strength from numbers, bicycle lovers across the city and country have banded to try and solve this problem. Websites and Facebook pages similar to Cairo Bike Scene have been set up to help people organize biking events across Cairo.
By making bicycles more accessible to our community, we as a country can take significant steps towards solving some of our most pressing problems, namely, an inactive and overweight community, soul crushing traffic congestion, and pollution.
Cycliste and Baddel are two Egyptian startups that are capitalizing on the rising wave of interest in cycling. Their target markets are different, but their mode of operation are similar: providing bicycles for rent at easily accessible pick-up locations and convenient drop-off points.
Cycliste
Cycliste is keen on creating a cycling movement in Egypt and has its eyes set on university campuses. For the initial phase of the project, students are asked to sign up for the service. The university that is able to gather the most signups will be the first one to have the bike sharing service implemented.
Students will be able to use the Cycliste app to locate the bicycle nearest to them, and, using the QR code pasted on the bike, unlock it and cycle wherever they please for a minimum fee.
This is bike riding for students, made easy. There is no need to worry about maintenance or security because Cycliste has that covered.
Cycliste is currently working to collect over one hundred bicycles in preparation for the launch of their service. If you have a working bicycle at home that is just collecting dust, why not rent it to Cycliste and make up to 7000 Egyptians pounds a year?
Their future plans include branching out to residential and business compounds, and eventually to a Cairo street near you!
Baddel
Baddel is also working to address pollution and traffic congestion in Egypt. Taking note of the success of dock based bike sharing services in other large cities across the world, the founders felt certain that this idea could blossom in Cairo.
There is already a growing interest in living an active lifestyle among the younger generations in Egypt, meaning that bike sharing services could be the next big thing, the founders of Baddel founders told Stepfeed.
Baddel doesn't just provide normal bikes, their collection includes small motors, giving the user the option to peddle or put their feet up and enjoy an effortless ride. Despite having a motor, these bicycles are 100% environmentally friendly.
Users can take a bike from any docking station provided that they return it to any Baddel dock when they are done using it. This fee can be paid in cash, by credit card, or through a mobile app.
Baddel's project will be up and running in El Gouna in the next couple of weeks. Baddel has already begun implementing it as well in SODIC West, (Sheik Zayed), which is projected to be fully operational in a few months time.