Bikesharing By Deutsche Bahn

Call a Bike

We liked Call a Bike, the bike rental system of Deutsche Bahn subsidiary Deutsche Bahn Conntect GmbH from the beginning. Alas, the smart mobility service was initially not available as a mobile app. So we took the delivery of a solution into our own hands. We published the first version in the App Store in 2009, shorty thereafter Deutsche Bahn Connect contacted us and adopted our app.

We continued to successfully refine and develop the app in collaboration with the DB team and created mobility concepts for specific cities.

Download
App Store
Google Play

Proactivity Pays Off

As users of Call a Bike we missed an app for iPhones to find and book bikes whenever and wherever. So we decided to initiate the project: the necessary data was available on the website of DB. This allowed us to develop the app according to our own ideas, needs and wishes.

With success – Deutsche Bahn approached us immediately after the launch fo the app and purchased it.

Features

Call a Bike enables smart mobility wherevery you are:

• User registration via app
• Display of available bikes in the surroundings and the distance between user and bike
• Book and return with the app – making booking calls obsolete
• Interactive symbols indicating the position of bikes on a map
• Implementation of all established routing functions to navigate
• Compatible with all Call a Bike cities and systems
• Report damages simply by using the in-app function
• Generate and save several private and business user profiles

Agile Development

From the first day of this project we have been working constantly to enhance and improve the apps – including apps for Android and Apple Watch.
The basis for this is our agile development process with scrum. Our developers and the product management of Deutsche Bahn Connect form an effective and well-coordinated team.

Since our app is a white-label solution it can be adapted easily to Call a Bike’s partners’ bikesharing networks and brands.

Pioneering Voice User Interfaces

Following our iPhone app, we were eager to create additional benefits for customers via Amazons’ Alexa. When Alexa first hit the market, few experts concerning the usability of VUIs were available.

Instead of blindly launching features for any features, we focused on those that would add the greatest value to real user experience. This allowed us to gather feedback quickly and to improve and perfect the feature.

„Alexa, request a bike via Call a Bike“ – We developed a skill to trigger an answer in Amazons’ voice assistant. If your smartphone is not at hand, you can address Alexa instead. Alexa scans for the nearest available bike and lets you know within seconds where to find it.

Alexa also offers hands free access to one all core functions of the app – a huge advantage over smartphones.