OnzO's in a predicament

The bike sharing app OnzO which has taken the Auckland cityscape by surprise and storm, could be riding into a bit more controversy. 

The company popped up as a disrupting influence on Auckland’s increasingly crowded cycling scene late last year - flying in the face of regulators. The city’s landscape is now dotted with these curious bikes, largely black but detailed with a bright unmissable yellow.

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The company which communicates with it's clientele via social media is understood to have started up with no notice to authorities, and tells us via facebook that more bikes are soon to land.  That's the rub - OnzO's are already prominent on the cityscape - and some Aucklanders have hit out on the company's facebook page about the perceived mess they are making.  Add to that, the Herald's reported OnzO's only allowed to operate 660 bikes - any more and the company could lose its' license.  We're told that trial license is up anyway at the end of February.

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Other's though, love the concept and a separate facebook page "OnzO's in predicaments" celebrates the bikes with photos of them left in all sorts of situations. 

From the "OnzO's in a predicament" facebook page

From the "OnzO's in a predicament" facebook page

In fact, the endearing and almost startling thing about seeing the bikes all over the city is the way they are left by riders, abandoned after big nights, commutes, or leisurely jaunts. There they wait, be it under trees, outside the home of the last user, effectively anywhere they like, and it’s not always with the most convenient placement. The bright yellow colour and sporadic placement make them hard to miss.

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Meanwhile - Reddygo - which operates in Australia is getting set to launch here - calling itself the first legal dockless shared bike company to peddle its way into New Zealand.