NS is testing a new electric public transport bicycle with passengers for a year

The Dutch Railways (NS) is starting a test with an electric public transport bicycle. It concerns a one-year test at four stations with 30 e-bikes. Driebergen-Zeist is the first station to start the test: from 30 September you can rent an electric public transport bicycle there for ten euros a day.

Electric public transport bicycle

The electric public transport bicycle works the same as the normal public transport bicycle. You have your OV chip card scanned and the rental amount is deducted from that. However, the regular OV-fiets is a bit cheaper: you can rent it for 4.15 euros per day. But: you have to cycle entirely under your own power. The public transport bicycle is very recognizable: they are sturdy, yellow-blue bicycles, of which the Netherlands has 22,000.

However, more attention is being paid to electric public transport bicycles. For example, after three days of renting, they are 5 euros more expensive per day and you may not keep them for longer than 3 weeks. It is allowed, but you pay 1750 euros for the bicycle. Moreover, you cannot charge the ebike: you get it full from the NS and it is then only possible to provide it with power when you bring it back to the NS.

GPS tracker

NS is taking a year to test whether the ebikes are a good idea. They are of course a bit more vulnerable than regular bicycles. For example, a GPS tracker also keeps track of where the bicycle is: that is by the supplier. NS has no insight into this, only into who has rented a bicycle. With this, NS wants to guarantee the privacy of bicycle users. You can ride the bike for at least 50 kilometers before the energy runs out.

NS calls the bicycles the OV-ebike and they are available for rent. You can turn on OV-fiets information in the app by opening the NS app. You then go to ‘More’ and to ‘My NS’. Then log in with your NS account and activate the OV-fiets service by linking your OV-chipkaart with an active OV-fiets subscription. Then put the bicycle number of the OV-fiets you rent in the app and you will always have your OV-fiets info nearby.

What do you think of this initiative? Leave it now in the comments.