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Download The first batch of bikes provided by the government for public use in Beijing have proved popular with residents and are expected to boost the use of public transport in the city. "More than 200 residents called to inquire, and 130 registered to use these bikes in Chaoyang district alone yesterday," Mu Liang, a manager at GlobalNet Communication Technology Beijing, one of the two operators of the bike rental service, said on Tuesday. A total of 2,000 bikes have been stationed in 63 places with high traffic flow in Beijing's Dongcheng and Chaoyang districts since Saturday, to provide clean transport service to its residents, said the Beijing Municipal Commission of Transport in a news release on its website. Residents can rent a bike in one place and return it to any of the other 63 designated places. The public bike service will be extended to all districts in Beijing, and 50,000 bikes will be in use in 1,000 designated service places by 2017 to cover major towns, transportation hubs and streets, the news release said. Residents can use the bikes free for the first hour, and pay 1 yuan (16 US cents) for every hour afterward. Maximum expense for a day's use is 10 yuan, and a user can rent the bike for three days at most each time. Designated places will accept applications for registration with an ID card, a transport card for taking the bus or subway and a 200-yuan deposit. | 
