Bike-Sharing Company Spin Integrates With Google Maps Allowing Users To Locate Available Vehicles

Those using Google Maps to plan journeys can now also make use of Spin eScooters and eBikes using the tool, according to a press release.

They can locate Spin vehicles in 84 towns, cities and campuses in the U.S., Canada, Germany and Spain while using the Google service, the release stated.

“With this integration, Spin is making it easier for hundreds of millions of Google Maps users to easily incorporate shared bikes and scooters into their daily trips,” said Spin CEO Ben Bear in the release. “Our goal is to make it as low friction as possible for consumers to plan multi-modal journeys. It needs to be just as easy, and even more convenient to get around with bikes, buses, trains and scooters as it is with a personal car. This collaboration with Google is our biggest platform integration yet with many more in the pipeline.”

Users will be able to see in real time the nearest Spin vehicles as well as other information like how long it will take to reach the vehicles, estimated battery range and estimated arrival time, according to the release. Then, users will be taken to the Spin app to pay for the vehicle.

Micromobility is becoming a more popular mode of transportation, the release stated. eScooters and eBikes have been increasingly made a part of journey-planning apps for those who live in urban areas. Spin has also recently been built into several other platforms, including CityMapper, Moovit, Transit app and Kölner Verkehrs-Betriebe (KVB).

Another eTransport startup, Bird, added eBikes to its fleet in June with the launch of its Bird Bike, which is a shared smart vehicle. The Bird Bike is a connected vehicle, which is designed to be compatible with a city’s existing transportation network and has a high-power motor along with a basket for transporting items.

Read more: Bird Expands Its eBike Fleet, Launches Smart Vehicle

“With shared eBikes, Bird will partner with cities that do not have, or are looking to supplement, an existing bike- or scooter-sharing network to offer the highest quality vehicles and operations designed to meet the mobility needs of all riders,” the company said at the time.