Bicing or biking?

No matter how you spell it, it's all the same: an efficient and enjoyable mode of transportation. And one that is catching on in European cities as an effective addition to already robust public transportation systems.

Treehugger has been chronicling the recent growth of public bicycle rental schemes in Lyon, Paris and London, Copenhagen and Barcelona. Among distinctively named programs like Velo'v, OYBike and Bike Bahn, the newest entry–Barcelona's Bicing–should feel right at home. And, with over 30,000 users in the two months since Bicing was introduced, the program is being hailed as an unqualified success.

According to Treehugger, the European bike rental programs fall into the category of Product Service Systems, which are:

ways to save a truckload of money (and the environment) yet still have a lifestyle to which you have becomed accustomed? Just get your head around Product Service Systems (PSS). These take many forms and have a plethora of formal definitions. But in essence they are a means, by which we get what we want, without needing to own the product that provides that service.

From public libraries to Netflix warehouses and laundromats, we've all relied upon product service systems to meet our needs. So why is it that America hasn't developed effective PSS solutions to our transportation needs–Flexcar being the one shining exception to the rule?

Why, for instance, don't the lodging properties in Jackson (RV parks included) offer their guests a fleet of cruiser bikes for tooling around town? Or, why doesn't some entrepreneur work with the Town to develop a bike rental system at the the soon-to-be-erected eco-friendly parking structure?

Hmmm… I may have found my next calling.

Stay tuned.

Carbon Neutral Journal's thoughts are brought to you by Hawtin Jorgensen Architects.

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