Photo: Dr. Jean-Paul Rodrigue, 2008.

Bicycle Pool, Paris, France

The pooling of vehicles for short term rent is an option that is increasingly being considered and applied. The above photo shows the "Velib" (Velo Libre) initiative in Paris, France, where bicycles are offered for rental for less than 24 hours, and ideally for less than 2 hours. The system is composed of 1450 bicycle rental stations that have an average separation of 300 meters with a pool of 20,000 bicycles. It turned out to be very popular pooling system but also had some problems, notably a high level of vandalism and the need to reposition bicycles every night because of commuting patterns.