Ford buys Chariot, makes bike-sharing deal in alt-transport push
Ford Motor Co. has seen the future — and it’s not just in cars.
“We want to change the way the world moves,” CEO Mark Fields said Friday outside San Francisco City Hall, announcing plans for bike-sharing and commuter shuttle services as Ford seeks to transform itself into a broader transportation company.
The century-old automaker will buy San Francisco shuttle startup Chariot and expand its services nationally and internationally. Ford also will team up with New York bike-sharing firm Motivate to bring its services to more cities throughout the Bay Area, with the goal of providing 7,000 bikes in the region by the end of 2018, up from the current 700. Riders will be able to access those bikes, as well as shuttles from Chariot, through an online service called FordPass.
“We’re taking a look at the whole ecosystem of moving people around,” Fields said in an interview Friday. “Cities are growing. They’re becoming more congested.”
Ford will create a unit within the company, City Solutions, focused on working with cities to address transportation issues....MORE
