Coimbatore: The city corporation was recognized for introducing innovative projects under the smart city scheme on Friday at the third-year valedictory function of the urban development initiative held in Lucknow. It won the award for introducing the Ofo bike sharing platform in the city.
The bike sharing system, which was introduced in February, brought about 2,000 bicycles on the city roads. People could pick up a bicycle and ride it for free and drop it off at any of the 125 locations.
Coimbatore was the first city in Tamil Nadu to introduce the initiative, grabbing nationwide attention. The initiative garnered huge response, prompting the city corporation even to consider bringing more players into the market.
However, Ofo faced issues when residents began vandalizing the bicycles and even tried stealing them. Some people were found trying to remove the GPS and even repaint the bicycles.
