The company in charge of operating Mexico City’s public bicycle network — Ecobici — has been fined due to a reported lack of maintenance of the bicycles, Mayor Clara Brugada announced at a March 25 press conference.
In recent months, Ecobici users have reported issues with the city bikes, including broken seats, loose chains, flat tires and broken brakes and pedals, as well as faults in the app. Some users posted photographs and videos of the broken equipment on social media.
Many also criticized the distribution of docking spaces and a shortage of bicycles due to the poor balancing of units during rush hour.
“We will soon announce how Ecobici will be expanded in the city and how we will improve the service,” Brugada said during the press conference. “Calls are already being made to the company responsible for Ecobici so that all citizen complaints are addressed immediately.”
Brugada also said that the company in question had received a fine.
A consortium of the companies 5M2 and BKT Bici-pública has operated Mexico City’s Ecobici bikeshare network since 2022.
The recent problems have prompted many users to reconsider their membership, according to the news site La Silla Rota.
In announcing plans to improve Ecobici through an expansion program, the mayor did not offer any details on how this would be achieved.
A member of the PAN political party, Daniel Chimal García, in addition to urging the companies managing Ecobici to compensate users who had experienced service problems, criticized Brugada’s expansion plans.
“Despite mechanical issues, out-of-service units and a shortage of bicycles available at stations, this is how Clara Brugada’s administration wants to extend this system, which has not been functional in recent months,” Chimal García said during a March 31 session in Congress.
Chimal García has been vocal in the past about the need to develop more bike lanes, reinforce signage and improve the condition of public spaces.
Do Ecobici bikes receive regular maintenance?
Mexico City’s Ecobici network does receive regular maintenance. In 2024, the city’s Mobility Ministry said that over 300 units a day are serviced at a mega-workshop in the Miguel Hidalgo municipality and suggested that the deterioration of the bikes was due to their “constant and intensive” use.
11 de 26 bicicletas en la estación de @ecobici no sirven. @ecobici cada vez, peor. pic.twitter.com/aJIeJ7HKt6
— Bicireportera CDMX (@BicireporteraDF) March 18, 2025
This means that between 2,100 and 2,450 Ecobici bicycles are repaired each week, equivalent to between 23% and 26% of the 9,300 bicycles currently in service.
However, Ecobici employees have acknowledged that the new black bicycles “last less” than the previous red bikes, which they replaced in 2022, according to La Silla Rota.
Growing numbers of Ecobici users
Despite several challenges, the Ecobici network continues to grow. In 2024, Ecobici recorded over 22 million trips, marking an 83% increase on the previous year and a fourfold rise on 2022.
In the first three months of 2025, more trips were taken on Ecobici than in the whole of 2022, showing how the system has grown in popularity. This is likely owing to the expansion of the network and improvements to Mexico City’s bike lanes.
With reports from Chilango, La Silla Rota and Talla Política
