Tag Archive: Milan

  1. Lime reports 840,000 km rider travel during the Milan Winter Olympics

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    Source: Zag Daily Image credit: Andrea Ferrario, Unsplash

    Since the Italian city hosted 1.3 million visitors to the global sporting event from 6 to 22 February, the LEVA-EU member recorded over 433,000 trips on its shared e-bikes and e-scooters in the city, averaging at over 25,000 daily trips.

    When summarising its findings of 840,000 km travelled by Lime users during the busy period, the global operator believes it demonstrates how shared micromobility can help cities cope with peak demand levels while holding large global events.

    Lime’s Global Communications Lead, Emily Peykar, advocates that the key learning from the event is that users are more likely to choose micromobility options when it is integrated into the wider transportation network of cities, with strong operational support, and close cooperation with local authorities.

    “By focusing on creating a reliable service, supportive infrastructure and seamless first and-last mile connections, cities can convert event driven ridership into sustained everyday use,” stated Peykar.

    Milan facilitating increased micromobility use

    Lime has also shared that trips on Milan bike lanes had risen to 124% during its Olympics, when compared with the same 2025 time period, demonstrating the positive results of Milan’s cycling infrastructure investment. Over four years from 2020, Milan expanded its bike lane network by 47%, to 332 kilometres. As part of its “Cambio” bicycle plan, it is aiming to keep this expansion going, with the target of having 750 km of cycle lanes by the year 2035.

    Meanwhile, the sporting event saw a rise of 126% in users adopting Lime shared mobility services for the first time.

    To prepare for the Winter Olympics, Lime temporarily posted an additional 1,000 electric bikes in Milan, which were to remain in operation during the Winter Paralympics from 6-15 March. It also increased its staff to meet increased demand, such as deploying an additional 30% of bike mechanics at its Milan warehouse and boosting its in-field operations team responsible for maintenance and vehicle redistribution by 50%.

    Milan’s public transport integration with shared micromobility

    Lime has revealed the activity of its vehicles surrounding Milan’s transport hubs, with its most popular trip starting points all being metro stations: San Babila, Cadorna FN, Porta Genova, Cairoli and Centrale FS. The most popular trip end points were San Babila, Centrale FS, Cairoli and Cadorna stations, followed by the Olympic and Paralympic Village.

    Based on its findings, San Babila metro station was confirmed as the leading micromobility centre, with approximately 3,000 trips starting or ending there during the Olympics.

    The overlap of the same start and end locations highlights the role of micromobility as both a first- and last-mile public transportation connection mode.

    Lime demonstrates key management during peak city demand

    Lime implemented designated parking pins close to key access points to ensure management around the Winter Olympics venues. Almost 70,000 trips started or finished within parking zones of large events, as 10,700 trips ended within 800 meters of a Games venue.

    Lime’s latest results of its vehicles being used for a large sporting event follow the shared micromobility operator’s successful involvement in the summer 2024 Olympic Games in the city of Paris. With the event being much larger than the Winter Olympics, Lime confirmed that its fleet of 15,000 e-bikes was used for over 3.4 million trips.

    In other news, Lime shared that it has been acknowledged as a 2025 Leader in Sustainability by Call2Recycle / Appel à Recycler Canada. The company stated that the recognition reflects its ongoing commitment to ensuring responsible battery recycling and the role its team plays in supporting Canada’s circular economy.

  2. Behind the scenes of Lime micromobility in Milan

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    Source: Lime, La Repubblica

    Since adapting to increased demand levels due to the recent Winter Olympics, the LEVA-EU member gives a key insight into its 24 hour operational machine that ensures an integrated and efficient service for users of its electric bikes and scooters in the city.

    Italian publication La Repubblica interviews Lime’s Senior Operations Manager for Northern Italy, Arrigo Cirio, about how Lime works in the Italian city, with logistics, algorithms and tackling incorrect usage.

    The 24 hour system behind Lime’s micromobility fleet in Milan

    In Milan, Lime operates a complex logistical network, managing 5,000 bicycles and 3,000 scooters, which was expanded by another 1,000 bicycles during the Winter Olympics to meet peak demand. According to Cirio, the operation relies on real-time monitoring, logistics coordination, and data-driven planning.

    “Our vehicles, our activities are task-based,” Cirio explains, outlining a system that operates largely invisibly to users.

    The control room and algorithmic management

    Lime’s Milan operations are centralised in the Certosa district, where offices, warehouses, and a 24-hour operations centre are housed together. Ten staff members monitor the entire fleet in real time, coordinating four key activities: recovery of faulty vehicles, battery replacement, field maintenance, and vehicle repositioning.

    “When the battery drops below a certain level, a task opens, and the operator goes to replace the battery,” Cirio says. Battery standardisation across scooters and bikes simplifies logistics, allowing for rapid turnaround.

    Strategic repositioning, known internally as “moves” is driven by algorithms that analyse patterns to help decide where vehicles should be. “The parameters analysed are varied, including usage and local demand, which are continually analysed,” Cirio notes.

    Vehicles are directed toward high-demand hotspots such as Via Dante and Piazza Duomo, supporting not just tourism, but also last-mile mobility for commuter travel. Between San Donato and Milan alone, around 300 vehicles are exchanged daily to facilitate last-mile connectivity.

    Field teams and urban logistics

    Three categories of staff operate across the city: van drivers who transport vehicles between locations, in-field mechanics handling minor street repairs, and foot patrollers overseeing high-traffic zones. “The area between the Castle and San Babila is constantly monitored in two eight-hour shifts,” Cirio explains, due to consistently high demand and rapid turnover.

    For the Olympics, Lime increased its mechanic group, and dedicated foot patrollers to the areas of Santa Giulia, the Olympic Village, and the Media Center.

    Vehicle recoveries, AI, and user compliance

    Vandalism presents operational challenges, particularly when vehicles are thrown into the Navigli canal. “In the specific case of water, as soon as the vehicle enters the water it goes offline because the system dies and therefore the GPS immediately identifies it as requiring recovery,” Cirio explains. Specialised teams then deploy anchors and safety equipment to retrieve them.

    To reduce improper parking, every rental ends with a mandatory photograph analysed by artificial intelligence. However, “there’s a second step where a manual operator verifies the effectiveness of the AI’s activity.” Repeat violations lead to escalating penalties, culminating in account suspension after three offenses.

    Lime’s flexible operational model

    Lime operates a hybrid staffing structure combining permanent employees, agency workers, and seasonal labour to accommodate fluctuating demand during major events, such as the recent Winter Olympics, the annual Milan Fashion Week, Design Week and regular sport fixtures.

  3. Lime steps up Milan operations for Winter Olympics

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    Sources: Zag Daily, Smart Cities World

    Shared mobility provider and LEVA-EU member Lime is drawing on its experience of operating in worldwide cities during large-scale events, as the Winter Olympics come to Milan. Its aim is to enable smooth travel across the city for both residents and visitors, while helping reduce congestion around venues and transport hubs.

    Milan is home to a variety of Lime shared vehicles, with the latest generation of LimeBike added in May 2025, alongside e-scooters, fourth-generation e-bikes and e-bikes with child seats. Lime has not confirmed whether the fleet size will be increased during the Winter Olympics, but has outlined a number of measures being taken to ensure smooth operations and availability of vehicles during the event:

    • Increasing the number of bike mechanics in its Milan warehouse by 30%, enabling swift repairs and vehicle turnaround.
    • Doubling the number of in-field operators who manage on-street maintenance, minor repairs in parking areas, user safety checks, and active fleet management and redistribution.

    In preparation for the event in Milan, Lime has used its experience during the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics, where 3.4 million trips on 15,000 of its bikes were taken. Speaking to Zag Daily, Matteo Cioffi, Lime’s Regional General Manager for EU Central, said, “our approach builds on lessons from previous large scale events with operational readiness, fleet availability and street support adjusted to local conditions and travel patterns rather than headline fleet numbers. In Paris, we observed clear patterns showing that shared micromobility complements public transport during major events, particularly for short trips around venues and between transport hubs and final destinations”