Bolt Bikes launches e-bike subscription platform for couriers

Bolt Bikes is taking its electric bike platform designed for gig economy delivery workers to the U.S. and the UK.

Couriers using Bolt’s Light Electric Vehicles are said to have up to 30 per cent more earning potential, enabling them to make more deliveries per shift, with Bolt’s servicing network designed to keep them on the road for longer.

The company received $2.5 million funding in a seed round led by Maniv Mobility, European e-mobility firm Contrarian Ventures, individual investors and former executives of Uber and Deliveroo.

Bolt Bikes is providing “flexible subscriptions” which include vehicle servicing in Sydney, Melbourne, San Francisco and London. By 2020, Bolt aims to increase its fleet to ten times its current size. With a team of 20, it plans to expand across more cities in the US, UK and Australia.

Users can purchase Bolt Bikes, but the primary service is a rental service for commercial use. The electric bikes are rented on a week-to-week contract starting at $39.

“Being in the food delivery industry since its inception, we saw that light electric vehicles were the real future of ‘last mile’ logistics, yet no-one was offering the right vehicle, financing or maintenance solution,” said Mina Nada, the Founder and CEO of Bolt Bikes, and former Deliveroo and Mobike Executive.

“We are proud to be serving the real needs of delivery couriers while building the logistics infrastructure of the future.”

Postmates, the on-demand courrier app in the U.S., has been piloting a rental programme in San Francisco since June 2019.

Claire Sands, Director of Community Communications and Engagement at Postmates, said: “Bolt has the potential to provide yet another mobility solution for our Postmates to navigate dense urban areas and quickly deliver goods from pick up to drop off, helping to boost efficiency, power additional earnings for the fleet, and create more sales for local businesses.”