Wuxi, Jiangsu province is reinstating its public bike rental service by installing some 10,000 bikes in the city in May. According to local media, the bikes will be placed at 400 stations across the city, covering the Liangxi, Binhu, Xinwu, Xishan and Huishan districts.

The move, initiated by the Wuxi Metro Group, will alleviate the “l(fā)ast kilometer” problem, which refers to the difficulty people experience in getting from a transportation hub to their final destination.

A?batch of parking stations for the public bikes initiated by the Wuxi Metro Group have been?installed near the People's Hospital in Wuxi, Jiangsu province. [Photo/wxrb.com]?

The group aims to build a large public bike network comprising 40,000 to 50,000 bikes and 1,600 – 2,000 stations by 2022.

The public bike rental service was originally launched in Wuxi in 2009. It failed to meet commuters' expectation, the thorniest issue being incompatible data systems between two main operators.

The thriving bike-sharing services released by Mobike, Ofo and Bluegogo in recent months have also cast a pall of uncertainty over the future of Wuxi's public bike rental service.

The number of shared bikes in Wuxi is estimated to exceed 80,000 to date. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The shared bikes with cool designs have no strict parking limits. Many companies are rolling out free-rides in an attempt to grab a larger market share.