Lyft buys Citi Bike owner Motivate in move into bike-sharing business
Lyft says it's giving Americans another reason not to hassle with car ownership.
The ride-hailing company on Monday said it was buying Motivate, which operates bike-rental programs in major U.S. cities, including Citi Bike in New York and Ford GoBike in Lyft's hometown of San Francisco.
Lyft did not disclose terms of the transaction, but it was believed to be worth $250 million or more.
The deal has Lyft competing for consumers looking to get around town, and follows Uber's April purchase of Jump Bikes, a startup that rents electric bikes. The ride-hailing rivals are also competing in the scooter-sharing market.
"Lyft and Motivate have both been committed for years to the same goal of reducing the need for personal car ownership by providing reliable and affordable ways to move around our cities," John Zimmer, Lyft co-founder and president, said in a blog post.
Motivate's speciality involves conventional bicycles kept in docking stations around cities, and its agreements with San Francisco, Chicago and other locations will be part of the deal, Lyft said. The Brooklyn, N.Y.-based company's bike maintenance operations will stay as a standalone business under the current brand.
Separately, Motivate on Monday announced a deal to run a bikeshare program in Minnesota.
