Nice Ride Launches Dockless Fleet In Minneapolis

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Nice Ride Minnesota doubled its Minneapolis fleet Tuesday, releasing 1,500 dockless bikes in and around downtown.

The bikes are app-activated and can be found at roughly 200 virtual parking hubs.

The iconic green docked bikes aren't going anywhere any time soon, but Nice Ride released the dockless technology to try and compete with companies Bird and Lime, while staying out of the way of pedestrians.

Just like Lime and Bird, the dockless Nice Ride bikes cost $1 through the company's app, which users also use to unlock the bike. Nice Ride can also charge users fees if they do not return the bike to a parking hub.

The hubs themselves are located on sidewalks and along sides of roads, and are just a tape and a sign, aiming to be more affordable than the existing docked system, and more portable.

The new system launches with just one week left in summer, due to the supply chain, according to Nice Ride. It is part of a three-year partnership, with 1,500 more bikes scheduled to arrive in 2019 and potentially more in 2020, depending on how the rollout fares.

Nice Ride typically stores its bikes indoors during the winter, starting around November.