In brief: Ofo jacks up prices in Singapore

Over a week after authorities announced that six shared-bike firms would be granted licenses to operate in Singapore, China-based firm Ofo has raised its prices by up to three times – a double whammy for its users, who now also have a smaller pool of bicycles to tap on.

Those who opt for the pay-as-you-go service will be charged S$0.50 (US$0.36) per unlock, over and above a rate of S$0.50 per 15-minute block.

Source: Today

The new price schedule means that any ride lasting less than 15 minutes will cost S$1 (US$0.72), while a 30-minute ride will set a user back by S$1.50 (US$1.09) – triple the previous S$0.50 rate for each 30-minute period. A one-hour ride will now cost S$2.50 (US$1.81), twice what it did previously.

A longer term pass will cost users S$8.99 (US$6.51) for 30 days, S$16.99 (US$12.29) for 60 days, and S$26.99 (US$19.53) for 90 days – up from S$6.99 (US$5.06), S$15 (US$10.85), and S$25 (US$18.09), respectively.

Beijing-based Ofo is one of six companies to obtain operating licenses under the Singapore Land Transport Authority’s (LTA’s) new regulatory regime for dockless bike-sharing. While it welcomed the approval of its license application last week, the startup also highlighted misgivings, saying that the LTA-imposed limiting of its fleet to 25,000 bicycles “will not be sufficient to facilitate the high demand for bike sharing” in Singapore.

Now-defunct dockless bike player oBike withdrew its application for an LTA license, citing high operational costs that would result from the new regulatory framework.

Currency converted from Singapore dollars. Rate: US$1 = S$1.38