car – Beijing Kids https://www.beijing-kids.com Thu, 16 Feb 2017 05:45:17 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.1.2 Move Over, Ofo and Mobike: Rent an Electric Car for Just RMB 1 Per Hour https://www.beijing-kids.com/blog/2017/02/16/move-over-ofo-and-mobike-rent-an-electric-car-for-just-rmb-1-per-hour/ https://www.beijing-kids.com/blog/2017/02/16/move-over-ofo-and-mobike-rent-an-electric-car-for-just-rmb-1-per-hour/#respond Thu, 16 Feb 2017 05:45:17 +0000 http://www.beijing-kids.com/?p=96439 Beijing’s sharing economy has taken a huge step forward with the recent announcement that some 5,000 electric cars will be available to rent on a time-sharing basis in the city within two years. By using the Gofun App, Beijing residents will be able to rent an electric car at a rate of just 1 yuan/hour. With [...]]]>

Beijing’s sharing economy has taken a huge step forward with the recent announcement that some 5,000 electric cars will be available to rent on a time-sharing basis in the city within two years.

By using the Gofun App, Beijing residents will be able to rent an electric car at a rate of just 1 yuan/hour.

With some 1,100 cars already available in Beijing, Gofun will add another 2,000 cars by the end of this year, and another 3,000 by the end of 2018.

Making this car-sharing service especially practical is that they will be available in the capital’s central district. 40 to 50 locations along the Second and Third Ring Road are planned to be converted into retrieval and parking locations for the electric cars.

These locations, which will make use of vacant space under overpasses and bridges of the ring roads, will also be equipped with electric car recharging stations in order to broaden the recharging network for Beijing’s growing electric car user base.

Renting an electric car using Gofun is very similar to the Ofo and Mobike online-to-offline (O2O) services that have taken off over the past few weeks in Beijing.

READ: Are China’s Bike-Sharing Platforms Really Part of the Sharing Economy?

After downloading the app, Gofun users will register on their phone using their personal identification and driver’s license. After authentication, which takes just one hour, users will be given GPS-based directions on how to locate their rental car, which will honk upon their arrival.

Previous plans called for a payment rate of 1 yuan/1 kilometer. Additionally, users were offered a flat fee payment option of 10 yuan that would free the user of having to pay any car damages in case of accident of up to 1,500 yuan.

Gofun’s big emergence comes after last year’s merger of heated Chinese ride-sharing competitors Uber and Didi Chuxing. Meanwhile, some analysts are predicting that the current competition between Ofo and Mobike will also result in a merger.

READ: Infographic: Differences Between Ofo and Mobike

Gofun currently operates in four Chinese cities, and has future plans to extend its Beijing network outward to include neighboring Tianjin and parts of Hebei.

For a city as polluted as Beijing, any initiative to promote alternative energy comes as a breath of fresh air. City authorities have encouraged electric car use by lifting licensing quotas for electric car users.

It’s not clear if this service will be offered to expats living in Beijing.

More stories from this author here.

Images: Gasgoo, Dahe

This post originally appeared on our sister site, thebeijinger.com.

]]> https://www.beijing-kids.com/blog/2017/02/16/move-over-ofo-and-mobike-rent-an-electric-car-for-just-rmb-1-per-hour/feed/ 0 How to Use Baidu Wallet for Uber Payments https://www.beijing-kids.com/blog/2015/07/22/how-to-use-baidu-wallet-for-uber-payments/ https://www.beijing-kids.com/blog/2015/07/22/how-to-use-baidu-wallet-for-uber-payments/#respond Wed, 22 Jul 2015 07:00:00 +0000 After successfully setting up Alipay, I planned to start using it on the Uber car-sharing app instead of my foreign credit card. However, I was told by customer service after a few failed attempts that only mainland China customers with a shenfenzheng number could link up Alipay to Uber. That’s when I noticed a third payment [...]]]>

After successfully setting up Alipay, I planned to start using it on the Uber car-sharing app instead of my foreign credit card. However, I was told by customer service after a few failed attempts that only mainland China customers with a shenfenzheng number could link up Alipay to Uber.

That’s when I noticed a third payment option: Baidu Wallet (also known as Baifubao), launched last April by search giant Baidu. Within a few minutes, I had the service set up and was happily riding off into the distance (at a crawl ’cause it was rush hour, but still).

1. To find payment setup in the Uber app, click on the profile icon in the upper left corner of the home screen.

2. Select “Payment.”

3. Choose “Baidu Wallet.” Enter your Chinese bank card number (online payment must be enabled first through your bank).

4. On the next screen, enter your name and surname exactly as they appear in your bank account details, then your mobile number.

5. A six-digit verification code will be sent to your mobile phone. Enter it in the pop-up box.

That’s it! Baidu Wallet will appear in your payment options screen; it’ll be available to use next time you call an Uber.

Update [August 29]: We’ve heard from a couple of readers that not all domestic banks are supported with passports (such as ICBC and Agricultural Bank of China) and there’s a 20-character limit on names.

Sijia Chen is a contributing editor at beijingkids and a freelance writer specializing in parenting, education, travel, environment, and culture. Her work has appeared in The Independent, Midnight Poutine, Rover Arts, and more. Follow her on Twitter at @sijiawrites or email her at sijiachen@beijing-kids.com.

Screenshots: Sijia Chen

]]> https://www.beijing-kids.com/blog/2015/07/22/how-to-use-baidu-wallet-for-uber-payments/feed/ 0 Apps for the Summer Road Trips Ahead https://www.beijing-kids.com/blog/2015/05/16/apps-for-the-summer-road-trips-ahead/ https://www.beijing-kids.com/blog/2015/05/16/apps-for-the-summer-road-trips-ahead/#respond Sat, 16 May 2015 00:00:00 +0000 May is here and that means summer is nearly on its way with the travel plans are booked, kids are yo-yoing between no waking up early to go to school excitement and the misery of missing their friends. For those, families who have opted to drive to get more of a road trip experience then [...]]]>

May is here and that means summer is nearly on its way with the travel plans are booked, kids are yo-yoing between no waking up early to go to school excitement and the misery of missing their friends. For those, families who have opted to drive to get more of a road trip experience then you’ll need to be armed with apps; navigation and keep the kids on their toes apps.

This past February, I found myself in the shotgun seat of a seven-seater car with two lovely girls (age 9 and 7) and the one thing that kept the sanity of both kids and adults were the apps. The kids will be asleep in no time, its those times when they are awake that will need the following apps to get all to take part.

Waze
If traveling in China this app, won’t work but outside of China this is the best app for navigation. This app will tell you how long to get to your destination, alternative routes, which are all from other drivers. If you are driving in a capital or urban area then you can get warnings of upcoming police and construction hazards. The only drawback is that it will drain your battery so make sure this is connected to a power source at all times.
Free
Platform: iOS, Android

Roadtrippers
Check out the website before heading out to get ideas for your next great adventure. This app will help plan pit stops along the route you have picked such as restaurant, kid-friendly ones and parks. This app also includes the offbeat hotels along the route in the event that you might need to stop for unforeseeable reasons. Hotel Tonight works well with this app as you get to know where last minute hotel rooms are available and if they are child friendly.
Free
Platform: iOS, Android

Tales 2 Go
The kids will reach their limit and full of using apps in the car and the books will fall into that category much earlier. But this audio books app will be just the thing to keeping the sanity levels at a safe and bearable. There’s education grade levels, celebrity narrator, listen to a language, and more. drawback is only 30-day trial.
Free trial (USD 99.99 per year)
Platform: iOS

Mad Libs
The one thing that you will want is to record the moments, so this app lets you take photo from your gallery, type in nouns like when you see a place and don’t know the name then let the app do the rest. There are different ones to try: WWE Mad Libs, Hello Kitty Mad Libs, and Family Guy Mad Libs!

Have a great drive, pack snacks, load up on spotify for age appropriate music, get a local SIM card with data packages, and power batteries just in case.

Stay safe!

 

Photo: waze.com

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