Pedro Roberto Kanof is an Italian engineer and inventor. He ideated[ clarification needed ] the first electronic system and method for renting bicycles in the 1980s, the same method that is now used globally in the bicycle sharing system. [1] [2] [3]
Kanof was born in Buenos Aires, in 1944. After having studied Electronics and Computer Science in Buenos Aires and Paris, Pedro Kanof moved to Milan, Italy, in 1972. In 1976 he obtained a doctorate in Electronic Engineering at the Polytechnic University of Milan, and later on he continued his studying activities at Berkeley.
As an expert in IT, between the 1970s and the 1990s, Pedro Kanof worked in industries such as Alfa Romeo and Mondadori, and financial organizations like The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. In the same period of time, he taught in various universities such as Berkeley, The Johns Hopkins University, [4] the George Washington University and the University of Venice Ca' Foscari. In 1991 he edited the book Innovazioni tecnologiche: nuove opportunità per gli anni '90 (Technological Innovation: new opportunities for the '90s), published by Franco Angeli. [5] In 2001 he contributed to the Forum on artistic education and the homonymous publication Arteinformazione. L'identità italiana per l'Europa (Artinformation. Italian Identity for Europe). [6]
In 2007 he founded a company named Kanof Mobility Solutions LLC in Washington DC, which he directed until 2016, and then he kept working on his activities in Milan. The company's mission is to produce and install his latest invention, which consists of a new sustainable transportation system. This system is based on electronically protected parking stations for every type of bicycle, public or private. [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] This invention represents a significant step in the evolution of the original automatic and electronic public bike renting system that he invented. On August 13, 2013, the USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office) granted the patent number 8,508 333 for his new invention. [14]
From 2008 Kanof has been invited to take part to many conferences and international professional congresses on sustainable mobility and urban transport in various cities (among which Dresden, [15] Copenhagen, [16] Milan, [17] Berlin, [18] Rome, [19] Turin [20] [21] and Lisbon [22] ) and Universities (such as Federico II University in Naples [23] and Universiteit Gent [24] ).
A bicycle-sharing system, bike share program, public bicycle scheme, or public bike share (PBS) scheme, is a shared transport service where bicycles are available for shared use by individuals at low cost.
Sustainable transport refers to ways of transportation that are sustainable in terms of their social and environmental impacts. Components for evaluating sustainability include the particular vehicles used for road, water or air transport; the source of energy; and the infrastructure used to accommodate the transport. Transport operations and logistics as well as transit-oriented development are also involved in evaluation. Transportation sustainability is largely being measured by transportation system effectiveness and efficiency as well as the environmental and climate impacts of the system. Transport systems have significant impacts on the environment, accounting for between 20% and 25% of world energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions. The majority of the emissions, almost 97%, came from direct burning of fossil fuels. In 2019, about 95% of the fuel came from fossil sources. The main source of greenhouse gas emissions in the European Union is transportation. In 2019 it contributes to about 31% of global emissions and 24% of emissions in the EU. In addition, up to the COVID-19 pandemic, emissions have only increased in this one sector. Greenhouse gas emissions from transport are increasing at a faster rate than any other energy using sector. Road transport is also a major contributor to local air pollution and smog.
Milan has an extensive internal transport network and is also an important transportation node in Italy, being one of the country's biggest hubs for air, rail and road networks. Internal public transport network includes the Metro, the Suburban Railway, the tram and bus network, as well as taxi, car and bike sharing services.
The Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport is the government ministry for transport in the Republic of Italy. It is responsible for all transport infrastructure as well as general transport planning and logistics, especially for urban transport schemes, with a particular attention at their sustainability. It is led by the Italian Minister of Sustainable Infrastructures and Mobility.
The EcoMobility Alliance is a global, cross-sectoral partnership for the affirmation of EcoMobility i.e. the integrated promotion of walking, cycling, wheeling and passenging. The Alliance promotes EcoMobility for the purpose of mobility and accessibility for all, health, clean air, noise avoidance, energy efficiency, greenhouse gas emission reduction and individual cost savings, and thus as an opportunity for sustainable urban development.
BikeMi is a public bicycle sharing system in Milan, Italy. It was launched on 8 December 2008 and is contracted to and operated by Clear Channel on the basis of its SmartBike system. The scheme encompasses 4,650 bicycles and 325 stations.
Shared transport or shared mobility is a transportation system where travelers share a vehicle either simultaneously as a group or over time as personal rental, and in the process share the cost of the journey, thus purportedly creating a hybrid between private vehicle use and mass or public transport. It is a transportation strategy that allows users to access transportation services on an as-needed basis. Shared mobility is an umbrella term that encompasses a variety of transportation modes including carsharing, Bicycle-sharing systems, ridesharing companies, carpools, and microtransit.
Capital Bikeshare is a bicycle-sharing system, which serves Washington, D.C., and certain counties of the larger metropolitan area. As of January 2023, it had 700+ stations and more than 5,400 bicycles. The member jurisdictions own most of the equipment and have sourced operations to contractor Motivate International. Opened in September 2010, the system was the largest bike sharing service in the United States until New York City's Citi Bike began operations in May 2013.
SmartBike DC was a bicycle sharing system implemented in August 2008 with 120 bicycles and 10 automated rental locations in the central business district of Washington, D.C. The network was the first of its kind in North America, but was replaced by the much larger, publicly funded Capital Bikeshare system in the fall of 2010. SmartBike DC officially ceased operations in January 2011.
Bluebikes, originally Hubway, is a bicycle sharing system in the Boston metropolitan area. As of July 2021, the system had deployed 393 stations with a fleet of over 3,800 bikes in the 10 municipalities it served. Bluebikes is operated by Motivate and uses technology provided by 8D Technologies and PBSC Urban Solutions for equipment. The bike share program officially launched in Boston as Hubway. From 2012 to 2021, neighboring municipalities of Brookline, Cambridge, Somerville, Everett, Newton, Arlington, Chelsea, Watertown, and Salem joined the system. By 2020, total annual members neared 23,000, and as of 2021, 14 million total rides have been taken.
Hangzhou Public Bicycle is a bicycle sharing system serving the city of Hangzhou. As of January 5, 2013, with 66,500 bicycles operating from 2,700 stations, it was the largest bike sharing system in the world, although it has since been overtaken by a number of dockless bike share operators such as Mobike. It is the first bike-sharing system in China. It plans to expand to 175,000 bikes by 2020.
Ecovolis was a community based bike sharing program in Tirana, Albania, launched on March 22, 2011, from an environmental NGO called Social Stimulating Alternatives Program (PASS). The system was based on 6 bike stations, respectively staffed by two employees in two shifts. During its time, the Ecovolis program was successful in increasing bicycle use in Tirana.
Bay Wheels is a regional public bicycle sharing system in California's San Francisco Bay Area. It is operated by Motivate in a partnership with the Metropolitan Transportation Commission and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District. Bay Wheels is the first regional and large-scale bicycle sharing system deployed in California and on the West Coast of the United States. It was established as Bay Area Bike Share in August 2013. As of January 2018, the Bay Wheels system had over 2,600 bicycles in 262 stations across San Francisco, East Bay and San Jose.
Indiana Pacers Bikeshare, also known as Pacers Bikeshare, is a public bicycle-sharing system in Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. The service is operated by BCycle, a public bicycle-sharing company owned by Trek Bicycle Corporation. The system launched in April 2014 with 250 bikes and 25 docking stations and has since expanded to 525 bikes and 50 stations. The service is available to users 24/7 year-round. Pacers Bikeshare is owned by and managed as a program of the Indianapolis Cultural Trail.
Mobike, also known as Meituanbike, founded by Beijing Mobike Technology Co., Ltd., is a fully station-less bicycle-sharing system headquartered in Beijing, China. It is, by the number of bicycles, the world's largest shared bicycle operator, making Shanghai the world's largest bike-share city in December 2016. In April 2018, it was acquired by a Chinese web company Meituan-Dianping for US$2.7 billion.
Spin is an electric bicycle-sharing and electric scooter-sharing company. It is based in San Francisco and was founded as a start-up in 2017, launching as a dockless bicycle-sharing system controlled by a mobile app for reservations.
Micromobility refers to a range of small, lightweight vehicles, driven by users personally. Micromobility devices include bicycles, e-bikes, electric scooters, electric skateboards, shared bicycle fleets, and electric pedal assisted (pedelec) bicycles.
Helbiz, Inc. is an Italian-American intra-urban transportation company headquartered in New York City with an aim to solve the first mile/last mile transportation problem of high-traffic urban areas around the world.
CoGo Bike Share is a public bicycle sharing system serving Columbus, Ohio and its suburbs. The service is operated by the bikeshare company Motivate It was created in July 2013 with 300 bikes and 30 docking stations, since expanded to about 600 bikes and 80 stations. The service is operated in conjunction with the City of Columbus, which owns all equipment.
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