Vandalism wave affects shared bicycle network in Lisbon
The shared bicycle network Gira in Lisbon has been the target of acts of “frequent vandalism in Lisbon last months” affecting the functioning of the service and causing “considerable damage to the city’s heritage” which
“around 200 euros per bicycle” .
In a press release, EMEL – Lisbon Mobility and Parking Company, specifies that “only in the last 15 days, Gira suffered about 100 acts of vandalism, mostly theft, which has affected the entire operation”.
Stations that have been particularly targeted are those located at Gare do Oriente; Vasco da Gama Shopping Center; Municipal Square; Cruise Terminal (Avenida Infante Henrique); Largo Frei Heitor Pinto; Rua do Arco Cego; Avenida 5 Outubro and Avenida Igreja.
In the report of
«TVI24» associated here, officials of the Shared Bicycle Network of Lisbon explained that “many of them are found intact” in addition to the breakdown of the connection system to the stations, but that, regardless of the size of the repairs, the service is greatly affected as a whole.
The acts of vandalism end up affecting “the availability of the outdoor teams, who have to unfold and balance their work between the verification management”, to
“collection and replacement of bicycles” going through the attempt to recover the stolen units, as well as the “work of the teams of mechanics, as the damage caused requires a lot of time to repair”.
The Network of Shared Bicycles in Lisbon currently has 96 Stations in operation, which represent a total of about 1,800 docks for more than 900 bikes available.
PUB
