Can't Get a Didi Due to New Covid Rules? Grab a Share-Bike!
Yesterday afternoon, it was announced that taxis and other cars for hire including Didi would not be allowed to take fares from within or going from Shunyi, Fangshan and southern Chaoyang to other districts starting May 12.
This has left a great many people living in these areas asking: how am I supposed to get around?
Well, why not use a share-bike instead? Beijing’s flat roads make it a perfect city for cycling, and unless you’re planning on a grand expedition across town, which isn’t really advisable given the current situation (unless it's an emergency, of course), most things are normally an easily cyclable distance away.
That said, if you haven’t used the share-bikes in a while or have never used them, you might have no idea what apps you need or how to unlock them. So here is our guide to using the three main share-bikes in the city.
You can use these bikes directly through the Alipay app, there is no need to download Hellobike app.
1. Select "Transport" as shown on image above
2. Then select "Bike"
3. Then tap on the button that says "Scan to ride" so you can scan the QR code on the bike
4. Don't forget to slide the bar across to lock your bike when you're finished!
These are used through the general Meituan app – just note that it's not accessible in the Meituan Waimai app.
1. Select the bike (骑车 qí chē) symbol as show on image above
2. Then select the scan button (扫码用车 sǎo mǎ yòng chē) at the bottom to scan the bike's QR code
3.
Don't forget to slide the bar across to lock your bike when you're
finished! Note that the newest version of these bikes doesn't have a bar
to relock. Instead, you need to go back into the Meituan app and
conclude the journey.
Use your usual Didi app to unlock these bikes.
English Didi app:
1. Select "Bike" as show on image above
2. Then tap on the "Scan to Ride" button to scan the QR code on the bike
3. Don't forget to slide the bar across to lock your bike when you're finished!
Chinese Didi app:
1. Select the bike symbol (青桔骑车 qīng jú qí chē) as show on the image above
2. Then select the scan button (扫码用车 sǎo mǎ yòng chē) at the bottom to scan the bike's QR code
3. Don't forget to slide the bar across to lock your bike when you're finished!
Note: If you’ve not used any of these share-bikes before, you’ll be asked to accept permissions etc. in the app between these steps.
Things to check before unlocking:
Do the pedals work? Give them a little nudge with your foot, if you kick them to go backwards you can see how stiff the pedals are.
Do the brakes work? Give the brakes a squeeze.
Can you adjust the seat?
Generally, if the bike looks super old and dirty, it’s probably not going to work that well.
A few personal recommendations on using these bikes:
Didi bikes tend to be heavier and more clunky so if you’re looking to go a longer distance, I’d suggest avoiding these.
My personal favorite are the Alipay bikes as I’ve found them to be the most reliable in terms of being quite light, easy to cycle and normally in quite good condition. The older bikes have blue baskets and are normally in worse condition, look out for the ones that have black baskets instead.
Meituan bikes are generally ok, sometimes they can be a bit slower and clunkier than the Alipay bikes.
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Images: Katie Coy
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