University of California, Irvine
Parking and Transportation Services
Application for 2010 Larry L. Sautter Award for
Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Information Technology
Project Title
ZotWheels - Automated Bikeshare
Submitted By
Lynn Harris
Sr. Administrative Analyst
Parking and Transportation Services
200 Public Services Building
University of California
Irvine, CA92697-4525
, 949.824.1467
Project Leader
Ron Fleming, Director, Parking and Transportation Services
Team Members
Michael Davis, Interim Manager, Sustainable Transportation Division
Lynn Harris, Planner and Project Specialist
Clint Maruki, Manager, Information Technology
Jeffrey White, Programmer Analyst, Information Technology
Michael Yu, Principal Parking Supervisor and ZotWheels Support Team Leader
Project Summary
ZotWheels is the first automated bikeshare program in California and only the second at a university in the United States. This program provides the UCI campus community access to immediate low cost transportation at fully-automated, self-service bike stations. The ZotWheels system is linked to P&TS’s online Antpark store and back-end computer systems allowing a member’s information to be automatically linked to existing online information. Members register online, take an online bicycle safety course, e-sign a liability waiver, and either pick up their card or have it mailed. The member swipes their card at any of the four stations and rides one of 25 bikes for three hours - to class or a meeting, shopping across the street, or for pleasure on one of the many local bike trails.
Project description
In early 2008, management at P&TS decided to pursue automated bikeshare to complement P&TS’s existing sustainable transportation programs for faculty, staff, and students. Automated bikeshare is popular in Europe and Canada but was not available in the U.S. until P&TS worked with a vendor to create its own program called ZotWheels.
Under P&TS direction, a manufacturer, Central Specialties, Ltd. (CSL), was able to modify an existing product to accommodate bicycles. P&TS contacted a manufacturer of licensed bicycles, the Collegiate Bicycle Company,to create a customizedthree-speed beach cruiser, university-mascot themed bicycle to integrate with the automated stations.
The system utilizes software from Miles Data and P&TS’s own back-end management system, Antpark, which links all of parking’s products and user information to the ZotWheels registration page.
The ZotWheels home page, shown above, was designed and created by the Information Technology (IT)department at P&TS. UCI community members simply go to the site and click on the “sign up here” or “join” logos to sign up for membership. The member then signs in via their UCInetID and Antpark automatically populates the customer’s information based on their previous parking purchases. The site then moves the member to a registration page to verify personal information, e-sign an online liability waiver, and take a bicycle safety course before making payment.
After each member has signed the waiver and successfully taken the bicycle safety course, they are verified for membership and added to the ZotWheels database where each transaction is tracked by station, member, bicycle, date, and time. Administrators can tell at a glance the status of each station’s wireless connectivity, how many bicycles are at each station and what bikes are checked out to which members.
After the member receives their preprogrammed card, they simply swipe the card at any station to rent a bike. Each station is computerized and networked together which allow members to rent a bike from one location, ride it, and return it to any of the other stations. At this point, 25 bikes are in circulation with the convenience of 40 available docking slots.
Operation and management of ZotWheels is administered by P&TS, employing existing staff and facilities, allowing complete internal control over the system. In-house management of the system provides for greater responsiveness in the field and the flexibility to make changes to the system if desired. Due to the automated nature of the system, there is little oversight required and less than 20 hours per week are devoted to ZotWheels, including customer service, membership fulfillment, IT, and maintenance. Any university with a few key staff can manage a bikeshare system based on the ZotWheels model. The program is replicable at either a small or large scale.
ZotWheels and Sustainability
Information collected by the system is used to determine usage patterns which help with campus development, parking and transportation policies, and maintenance alerts. Eventually, emission reduction calculations will be made from the different data sets to aid in complying with state laws governing greenhouse gasses (GHG).
ZotWheels works in tandem with UCI’s zoned parking policies, which limits permit holders to specific parking lots on the campus. These parking restrictions were set in place to primarily prohibit students from driving class-to-class and through neighboring communities during the day; thereby reducing unnecessary traffic, noise and environmental pollutants. ZotWheels, along with perimeter shuttle operations, work as a complement to the parking zone model by allowing students and staff mobility around campus.
ZotWheels bikeshare success provides added confidence in other forms of sustainable transportation as well. As the UCI community becomes increasingly aware of bikesharing opportunities, carpool and vanpool membership and participation in other means of public transportation increases because commuters know they have a means of travel during the day if they do not bring a vehicle to campus. Additionally, members use ZotWheels rather than owning a personal bike.
Besides the obvious environmental benefits, including a reduction in GHG emissions, reduction of traffic congestion, and the retention of open space by eliminating or postponing the need to build costly parking facilities, UCI’s program has allowed local officials and transportation agencies to get a first-hand look at a fully functional bikeshare system which has resulted in partnerships between the campus, city, and other transportation agencies.
Technology Utilized
ZotWheels bikeshare was designed using a combination of existing, proven technologies to create a program that is self-sufficient and environmentally friendly. ZotWheels requires an internet connection yet has flexibility on the connection, using wireless (WiFi), cellular, or hardwired networks. The four existing ZotWheels stations use WiFi to connect to server-based software to maintain a fully integrated ZotWheels system.
The system runs on a SQL primary back-end server which communicates withthe field computers located at each ZotWheels station to synchronize bicycle and member tracking within the database. Activity logs are updated to the server every four minutes while new membership information is pushed to the station computers. In order to allow for server downtime or in response to unforeseen connectivity issues, ZotWheels bikeshare stations are designed to function independent of the server.
The ZotWheels server has a web-based interface for the management of bikes and accounts. The ZotWheels database can be accessed by administrators to view real-time activity on the servers, members, and the bicycles. The database home page lists each station and the last time the servers updated wirelessly, along with the number of bikes currently locked into that location. If administrators notice unusual wireless activity, they can anticipate delayed synching with the local computers or can contact the campus Office of Information Technology to find out if a problem is indicated. The number of bicycles currently in use, and whether any members are in violation of the time limit can be seen at a glance, along with a running history of members, bicycles, and the number of minutes each bike was used. Reports can be generated from the Reports tab by selecting a date range and the desired data to be used.
ZotWheels employs radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology to track and validate the bicycle check-in/check-out process. Each bike is uniquely tagged and tracked within the system. Each bike has an RFID tag placed under a basket on the handlebars, which is read by an RFID reader in each port. During the check-out process the user is linked to the specific RFID tagged bicycle.
Using the tracked data, automated messages are sent to the member. Based on the event, such as a member initiating a function at the station, the ZotWheels station sends, via text based and email services, a series of prescribed messages which provide members information: acknowledging the rental, reminding them to return the bike before rental period is up, and that the bike has been checked back in. A myriad of personalized messages may be created in the database and sent to the member, depending on the trigger event. Similarly, the system can be set to alert maintenance crews when a bike has reach a predetermined hour of use, as well as alerting P&TS management when a bike has gone missing.
In addition to user ease, ZotWheels bikeshare technology allows administrators to access information about all of its bicycles from any computer terminal. Presently in the final stages of completion, custom online maps using API programming will supply real-time data to its users as seenbelow. The online maps will provide updates as to the number of bikes and docking slots currently available in the system. Lastly, P&TS IT members are finalizing a ZotWheels iPhone app which will provide members access to the full range of information about their rides.
Timeline of Implementation
- May 2008 – Initial contact with vendor, CSL, was made
- June 2008 – Order to proceed was given and production commenced
- February 2009 – Delivery was made to UCI
- June 2009 – Final site approvals made
- July 2009 –UCI Facilities Management final bids approved
- August 2009 –Construction at four ZotWheels stations commenced
- September 2009 – Construction completed
- October 2009 – ZotWheels Grand Opening event
- November 2009 – ZotWheels opens to the UCI community
Customer Comments
Makes me proud to be a ZotWheeler!
- ZotWheels member number 700094
You’re the best! Thank you!
- ZotWheels member number 700072
I didn’t know Parking provided a service like this. You sometimes hear the negativity but people don’t even know about ZotWheels. What a great idea!
- ZotWheels member number 700055
I think this is a great program. I would rather use the ZotWheels bikes than bring my own bike to campus. The basket is a great feature. I take the bike shopping to Trader Joe’s and ride around campus and the basket holds all my stuff. I love the program!
- ZotWheels member number 700057
“The City supports UCI’s application to expand their automated bikeshare system and looks forward to working cooperatively with UCI on a program that would expand beyond the campus.”
- Excerpted from a grant application letter of support from the City of Irvine
“Through shared use, [UCI’s] automated bikeshare program can increase access to a healthy transportation alternative to motorized travel and allow people to easily connect to and from other forms of transit to their destinations.”
- Excerpted from a grant application letter of support from the Orange County Transit Authority