Chengdu, 25 August 2017 - Dr. Joan Clos, Executive Director of UN-Habitat, and Mr. Xia Yiping, Co-Founder & Chief Technical Officer, Mobike, a leading smart bike share company in China, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between UN-Habitat and Mobike to promote bike sharing as an effective, smart and sustainable mobility solution for cities. The signing ceremony took place during Dr. Clos’ recent visit to Chengdu on 21st July 2017.

UN-Habitat and Mobike are looking forward to this collaboration to make urban cycling more accessible, popular, and smart while contributing to a sustainable future of our cities. The MoU provides a framework for cooperation within which the organizations will work together on promotion and implementation of bike share systems around the world but also to co-research on big data for accurate travel pattern analysis for urban and transport planning purposes.

"Bikesharing" can be an effective solution in cities that are facing increasing congestion and air pollution. Mobike is using innovative technology to make cycling the most convenient and environmentally-friendly transport choice for urban residents. Using specially designed bikes equipped with GPS and proprietary smart-lock technology, Mobike enables users of a smartphone app to find a bike near them, reserve and unlock it, all using their smartphones. After reaching their destination, the user parks the bike by the roadside and locks it, automatically making the bike available to the next rider. "Innovative solutions such as those introduced by Mobike are very relevant to the New Urban Agenda and a new paradigm of urban mobility" said Dr. Clos.

In the course of the event, UN-Habitat’s Executive Director tried out one of the latest Mobike bicycles and appreciated its comfort and safety as well as the use of innovative technology to get the bikes back to the city.