Another Sunday, another day where a happy yellow Ofo bike is tied up in chains.
For the uninitiated, Ofo is a bike-sharing app.
All you need to do to borrow an Ofo-brand bike is to download the app, locate an Ofo bicycle, then unlock it using the code provided. After you take it out for a ride, payment is deducted after locking the bicycle.
The bicycles can be parked at any location that is safe and convenient for the next rider.
The rides will be charged at 50 cents each, but it's free for now,
Free rides sound good, but some people take the word "free" pretty liberally.
Case in point:
so many people are taking advantage of the free usage of the ofo bicycles, example, my neighbours pic.twitter.com/thcZjORG3m
— A Ż (@nrazntaazmnx) April 8, 2017
Really, guys?
Sadly, this isn't even the first time that selfish Ofo users have locked up the bikes.
A photo of an Ofo bike chained outside of an HDB flat has gone viral, and many more netizens have reported sightings of locked Ofo bikes to the official Ofo Facebook page.
Just take a look at the following, which is only a sample of photos submitted to the page:
Photo via 金齐隽's Facebook comment
Photo via Tan Kok Hui's Facebook post
Photo via Weng Yew's Facebook post
Then, when it's not about the bikes being locked properly, you get people parking them at inappropriate places.
Photo via Chia Gek Lee's Facebook post
Photo via Teresa Teresa's Facebook post
This one takes the cake.
Photo via Jasper Yap's Facebook post
It's as if some users never want free rides ever again, with the way they're treating the bikes. Their actions defeat the purpose of a bike-sharing app, by the way.
Do the right thing
On Ofo's part, there's no hard and fast rule on locking the bicycles with personal locks just yet - their website only shows safety guidelines:
Screenshot via Ofo's official website
However, Ofo has spoken out on the matter, encouraging the public not to lock the Ofo bicycles with their personal locks for the convenience of other users.
To curb the issue, Ofo has also encouraged people to report any case of issues arising from the usage of the bikes.
This includes illegal parking, and probably that of chained bicycles as well.
Those who help move misplaced bicycles into proper bicycle parking areas will also receive Ofo vouchers as a bonus.
Hopefully, this will mean more Ofo users will remember and apply common courtesy in their usage of the bikes.
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Top image adapted via nrazntaazmnx's Twitter, Tan Kok Hui's and Jasper Yap's Facebook posts
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