Development of the Sharing Economy in China: The Interaction between Bike-Sharing and Urban Governance

ABSTRACT:“Solving the last three kilometers of travel” is the slogan of the shared bike. The shared bike hasalready become a profound influence on our daily travel. Compared to Didi Chuxing, a popular onlineapplication for booking vehicles with a driver in Mainland China, the presence of shared bike is moreremarkable than ever. Nowadays shared bikes have already changed the images and the landscapes of cities andmetropolises. There are more and more city dwellers in Guangzhou who choose shared bikes as their favoritemeans of locomotion. However, there are some shortcomings exposed by the users of these shared bikes, itinvolves the occurrence of the condemned behaviors in terms of the use of these shared properties. After use,these shared bicycles are, most frequently, deserted elsewhere and poorly parked. The urban planners did notrealize and provide adequate parking spaces for shared bikes because they seemed to underestimate theconstruction of bicycle lanes and parking facilities. As a result, there is a conflict between the companiesmanaging these shared-bikes and urban governance, and these discords are increasingly conspicuous andinevitable. Since it has become a predominant problem for local governance, the service of bike-sharing is notonly a challenge for the local authorities, but also indicates an important phenomenon for the globalreorganization and diversification of the means of travel in urban areas. Therefore, the main objective of thisstudy is to explore new approaches and strategies to improve this transportation sector. Concerning the methodof collecting data, we reviewed numerous noticeable literatures and periodicals, interviewed cyclists and bikesharing employees in order to reach the hidden facts underlying in the problems of shared-bike service. On theone hand, we attempt to better understand these conflicts and the trend of bike-sharing as well as urbangovernance system. On the other hand, we would also develop certain speculations and analysis on theestablishment of shared bikes based on our assessment of the experience we have acquired and the impactstowards urban governance. This research would also provide substantial suggestions on reducing theunavoidable collision with urban governance caused by shared bikes.

KEYWORDS:Bike-sharing, Challenges, China, City planning,Urban governance