Bike taxis has been appeared in Astana. This is first time ever for Kazakhstan, Tengrinews reports citing one of the organisers of the unusual project Amirkhan Ashenov.
Bike taxis has been appeared in Astana. This is first time ever for Kazakhstan, Tengrinews reports citing one of the organisers of the unusual project Amirkhan Ashenov.
The idea to set up such a business in Astana came to two young men Amirkhan Ashenov and Kaiyrbek Dzhusambayev after their trip to the United States on Work & Travel.
The pilot project was introduced in 2013, but it gained the officially approved by the Astana city administration only this year and the direct support from the authorities gave it a successfully kickstart.
Since the principle design of bike rickshaws is the same around the world, the frame and basic parts were brought from Japan and assembled in Kazakhstan.
"We now have 10 cycle rickshaws, but later on we plan to increase that number to 100 just for Astana. They usually ride (the high end part of the city located) at the left bank of Astana, near Baiterek monument, Khan Shatyr and Mega shopping malls, and also near the Central Park (close to the embankment of the Yesil River). In future, the bike taxis may cover the whole city," Amirkhan Ashenov said.
The cost of enjoying a bike taxi ride varies depending on the distance, but usually ranges between 1000 tenge ($5.45) and 2000 tenge ($10.9).
After winning the capital the two businessmen are planning to expand to other cities of Kazakhstan, starting wth Almaty and Karaganda.
Reporting by Aidana Usupova, writing by Assel Satubaldina, editing by Tatyana Kuzmina