Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
A BIKE SHARING company has changed the names of a large fleet of its vehicles following complaints surrounding the use of female names to identify bicycles in conjunction with the phrase “riding” on their app.
Moby Bikes, an Irish company providing push and delivery bike services across the US, UK, Ireland and the Netherlands, used human names to organise its fleet, drawing on Irish names such as Maeve, Brigid, Liam and Thomas to identify vehicles.
The company also used planet and country names, such as Jupiter, Earth and India, in labelling its bicycles, a spokesperson for Moby Bikes Ireland has said.
App users are notified of the name of the bike they are travelling on throughout the duration of their journey as well as the cost.
However, the use of the verb “to ride” in an Irish context followed by female names on such notifications has sparked complaints among consumers, who have described the system as “sexist” and “inappropriate” online.
The backlash resulted in the company changing the name of some 350 bicycles and reverting their identification process to a numerical labelling system.
Speaking to The Journal, Moby’s spokesperson said that the company’s previous naming system is one that has been adopted by bike sharing companies across the UK and Europe to personalise the consumer experience and facilitate easier customer service reporting.
He said: “In the same way the Irish Navy has vessels named Ciara, Roisin and Niamh and Aer Lingus has planes named Brigid and Ailbhe, we also used Irish-sounding names such as Maeve.
“We do indeed use female names for some of our bikes and we also use male names for others.
“We and other operators across the industry have found this to be a fun and engaging way to connect with our customer base as often users will specifically rent the bike with their own name or a name that they have a connection with.”
Some app users have said that they could only find female-named vehicles while searching for available bicycles.
These claims have been rejected by the company, who said that names are “randomly selected” and estimated that the ratio of female, male and “obscure”, gender-neutral names works out at approximately 40:40:20.
Commenting on the use of the word “ride” in the context of female-named bicycles, the spokesperson said that the verb is widely used across the mobility industry and is not connected to the colloquial meaning of the word in Irish slang, which has sexual connotations.
“Unfortunately a sexualised or slang interpretation of ‘to ride’, was immediately seized upon and caused outrage on Twitter,” he said.
“In light of this controversy, yesterday afternoon we decided that the 350 new pedal bikes in Dublin City are better off being labelled as inanimate objects and the names were reverted to 0051, 0052, 0053 [and so on].”
Launched in 2019, Moby Bikes is currently based in Glasnevin in north Dublin. The company’s dockless electric bike share scheme, Moby Move, operates across the capital city and in Westmeath.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
I cannot understand why the Gov do not invest that money into the Air Corp and let them carry out all SAR missions, as it is the AirCorp carry out many missions already.
At least this way the Gov would own the helis etc instead send money out of the state.
@Brian Guilfoyle: Depreciation, maybe? I’d imagine those helis are rugged, because they get a lot of use.
@Brian Guilfoyle: Absolutely 100% agree, the Coast Guard should be more closely integrated into Defence Forces , we have spent the guts of € Billion with CHC. We need to invest in Aer Corps and Navy to deliver a world class Coast Guard and Naval Patrol. Irish Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in terms of Maritime territory is 11 times the size of Ireland. The Government should at this a strategic long term Investment if they are serious about Ireland’s Neutrally or Militarily non -aligned. Our capabilities are really poor when when compared with other “Neutral“ countries.
We need to be position to be able to conduct active 24×7 surveillance & protection of EEZ which contains some the most stratgeic Fibre optic comms between Europe and North America and some of fishing waters on the Globe.
@Brian Guilfoyle: We can’t even operate a basic Defence Force as it is, the thing is falling apart at the seams – plus we need help from the UK to protect our own airspace. Don’t forget the Air Corps ‘weren’t available’ the night of the R116 tragedy either….just another in a long history of unavailability. Can you imagine the current AC doing SAR in all fairness. Sorry to hear your ship is sinking, but the AC “is not available”… The Government is obviously at fault and needs to invest the same if not more into the Defence Forces before it can even ‘consider’ doing SAR. This is a 24-7 role with 98%+ availability, not a ’9 to 5′ jobbie.
@Frank Flanagan: were the Air Corps supposed to be waiting on an emergency that night 116 went down??? Crews are paid to be on duty… CHC had had Crews paid to be in Dublin, Waterford, Shannon and Sligo 24 x 7… that was their contract.. the Air Corps carried out SAR for 42 years prior to politicians awarding th contract to CHC… The Air Corps has been slowly draining since..
I just hope it’s not going to be another taxpayer sponsored service outsourced abroad
@Daniel Dudek:
Or brown envelope job
Service must be working so now it’s going to get broken. Why can’t they just renew the contract with the same people. Has someone got a vested interest here I wonder.
@Dave Barrett: or maybe there’s better aircraft or deal to be had. There’s plenty to moan about with our government but the amount of just baseless conjecture is astonishing. Moaning journal.
It seemed that we in Ireland are hell-bent on outsourcing to private companies making people believe we are getting a better deal… but the reality is we’re not at €670 million… has an average helicopter for this purpose is about €20 million which Air Corps equipped with 4 would only be required…Air Corps is also getting two new C295 SaR aircraft is designed for this purpose…so there is €500 million been wasted by this government.
@PMac: They can buy all the aircraft in the world, but when you haven’t got the qualified staff to operate them, whats the point.
Does anyone know are the crews and helicopters employed by CHC and therefore they will either lose their jobs or have to be rehired, and the machines potentially sent off to some other contract, or is it that this Bristow crew will just step in and crews and helicopters will just keep going pretty much as is with other people managing logistics that kinda thing? Seems mad to dismantle a service that’s already there and get in and train new crews etc potentially. In that case the government should have just bought out CHC Ireland and folded it into the army services. It’s not like we couldn’t afford it, it’s just that we’d probably feck up running it.
@bazhealy: Bristow will have to use their own machines, likely crews also though I imagine the current crews could/will apply for to fill their own positions.
Should be the Aircorps, end of!
@Chutes: thanks Chutes. Yes it should. Without a shadow of a doubt.
Air corps had it before CHC and the crash at Tramore scuppered their chance of getting it..
Probably over the outcome of the accident
Which was pilot error but the insurer
Would not pay out the claims for the 3 deaths of the rest of the crew and the aircraft.
A very messy case indeed .
Bristow operate alot oil rig work etc
Can I ask a question, how
Somebody must have done the maths
have your say