Ryde offers a bike sharing platform for university campuses that addresses issues with bike theft and maintenance. By attaching tracking locks to existing bikes, Ryde allows students to rent bikes without the costs of ownership. Students can locate available bikes through an app and the locks eliminate docking stations. An initial test revealed usage hotspots near classrooms and campus boundaries. Ryde is currently beta testing at USC with over 30 bikes and 80 users growing, and plans to fully deploy over 4 years by adding bikes with each new freshman class.

1. Executive Summary
Situational Analysis
Many college students use a bicycle to commute; at USC alone, over four thousand bikes are
strewn around campus. Bike theft – students face a 53% chance of losing their bike over eight
semesters – coupled with poor maintenance and the traffic caused by these commutes, leads to
numerous issues. Additionally, university campuses suffer from congestion as unmaintained and
incapacitated bikes add to overall clutter. Existing bikeshare platforms are far too inflexible and
expensive for university use.
Innovating with Bike Share
Ryde offers a transportation solution that provides students with the convenience of owning a
bicycle without the associated risks. Ryde leverages existing bikes on a campus to add to our
“fleet” of bikes. By attaching one of our Ryde locks, any bike can be wirelessly tracked and
unlocked. This allows a person (operator) to rent out their bike, for a revenue split, and reach out
to many more users looking to rent a bike. Every element of bikeshare, from find a nearby vehicle
to unlocking the bike, is accessed through the user’s phone. This eliminates bike docking stations
and kiosks, reducing bikeshare’s footprint on already-congested campuses.
This creates a bikeshare platform, which expands the utility of biking around campus. Students
find bikes that naturally distribute themselves around the university, mirroring the ebb and flow
of traffic throughout the day. One-way trips – not an option with bike ownership – adds to
possible use cases. Because bikes are tracked and self-locking, theft of Ryde vehicles can be
minimized. The locking module that houses the technology behind our platform will be build on
an Arduino, and has the potential to interface with a variety of sensors. Our bike fleets have the
potential to be massive data collection platforms for a variety of metrics.
A 2-week alpha test revealed both daily and occasional users of a bike sharing service. Data also
revealed that usage hotspots exist near classroom locations and along campus boundaries. A
median ride time of 3 minutes – coupled with average idle of almost 2 hours between use –
suggests implementation of a 3:1 student to bike ratio. Currently Ryde is running a Beta test at
USC with more than 30 bikes, with a functioning application, and user base of 80 people and
growing.
Sales and Marketing
Full deployment at a campus takes four years as waves of bikes are added alongside incoming
freshmen who use Ryde instead of purchasing a bike. We offer our service through multiple
subscription model, offering plans, ranging from $5-$15,catering to the needs of casual and high-
volume users.
The majority of Ryde adopters will be incoming students who have yet to purchase their own
bike. USG and other campuses provides access to admissions packets and orientation sessions - a
low cost avenue that increases visibility of our platform to thousands of potential customers.
Growth and Development
The true growth potential lies in the Ryde lock. Simply throwing a lock on a bike, that vehicle has
unlocked ten more users because of our tested bike to user ratio. And because operators take a
revenue split, they are encouraged to sign up and advertise for us as well. Through this model, the
growth becomes automated in that as more locks are thown into the market, more users join our
base. In simplifying commutes, Ryde will position itself as a premier choice in bike share.