CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 21, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Zagster, the nation’s leading provider of modern, flexible bike share services, has secured $15M in new capital, increasing its total funding to $32.2M. The additional funding will be used to accelerate the nationwide rollout of the company’s new dockless bike sharing service, Pace, and to further innovate on the only dockless platform that promotes not only bike sharing, but personal cycling as well. The round was led by Edison Partners, a leading growth equity investment firm.
Also announced today is Pace’s all-new smart-bike platform — custom designed and engineered to support Pace’s “lock-to” bike sharing model while also providing cities and colleges with infrastructure to promote an overall bike-friendly culture. Coming to new Pace bike shares beginning this spring, the new bike and parking system features:
- The first-ever smart bike with an integrated cable lock built into the bike frame, enabling riders to easily lock Pace bikes to any fixed object;
- The first-ever dedicated bike share parking that accommodates both shared and personal bikes;
- An enhanced Pace app — the only bike share app that makes it easy to find both shared bike parking and public parking in a single map.
These innovations allow cities and colleges that choose Pace to support dockless bike sharing and personal cycling with a unified service. The new funding accelerates the manufacturing schedule of new Pace bikes and parking racks to meet rising demand from cities that want dockless bike sharing, but require a lock-to model to mitigate the theft, abuse and chaos associated with rogue dockless bike shares.
“Bikes have always locked to things,” said Tim Ericson, Zagster CEO. “Cities have been willing to experiment with dockless bikes that don’t lock to anything because they lack sufficient bike parking and, until Pace, lacked a partner willing to install this infrastructure at no cost.”
“Pioneering cities who choose Pace’s lock-to model enjoy the convenience and freedom of dockless bike sharing without sacrificing safety and order, and maintain the predictability of parking hubs — all while integrating shared and personal cycling,” Ericson said. “More riders than ever before will benefit from a bike share that is an active city partner and advocate of smart solutions to support sustainable bike transportation for all cyclists, not just our riders.”
Launched in December 2017, Pace is live in Tallahassee, Fla., and Knoxville, Tenn., and coming to dozens of new cities in 2018. The accelerated launch timeline enabled by new financing will also help bring Pace to the 100+ existing city and college bike shares under the Zagster brand — creating a national Pace bike sharing network that reaches millions of riders and spans 35 states.
"We selected Zagster for a number of reasons, notably their experience in the industry, willingness to design a system to match our needs, support for accessible bikes and equitable access, and their new Pace dockless service, which we believe will foster increased ridership without compromising order or safety in Bloomington," said Mayor John Hamilton. "We want as many people on bicycles as we can safely and successfully accommodate, and Pace will help us achieve that goal. We look forward to bringing Pace to Bloomington and expanding the system over time so that it reaches everyone who wants to ride.”
More information about Pace can be found at ridepace.com.
About Zagster
Founded in 2007, and headquartered in Cambridge, Mass., Zagster operates more than 200 bike shares across 35 states. Zagster pioneered the smart bike platform that enabled bike sharing to flourish in communities of all types and sizes nationwide. The company’s goal: To make the bike the most loved form of transportation in every community.
More information about Zagster and its programs can be found at www.zagster.com.
Media Contact
Jon Terbush, Zagster communications manager, 617.681.4914, jterbush@zagster.com