Ltd. as a consultant and developed a vision, concept and business plan for the launch of the Melchari shared cycle scheme. The three-month demonstration experiment in Kunitachi City, where a port was set up based on the concept, was an unparalleled success, with many people using the service as their daily transport and many citizens expressing a desire to see it continue.

Contract period : 1.9.2017 – 31.12.2018
Implementation period : 22.8.2018 – 26.11.2018

Press release of May 2018 by Mercari Inc.
(Now closed)

■ Background to the introduction of Kunitachi City, Tokyo
Kunitachi City, Tokyo, the fourth most compact municipality in Japan, is a city where bicycles are well suited, with bike paths in the greenery and a cycle path along the Tama River leading to Kawasaki. The topography of the city is almost flat, so the Kunitachi City Regional Transport Plan, which came into effect in 2014, planned to introduce private-sector activity for community cycle systems with the aim of creating a ‘Bicycle Town Kunitachi’.
Melchari, which has just started a demonstration experiment, is in the most important phase of “repeating trial and error, brushing up” and “accumulating knowledge through hypothesis and verification”, and in this respect, the “compactness with a clear view” of 2.3 km east-west and 3.7 km north-south is the most beneficial In this respect, the “compactness with a view” of 2.3 km from east to west and 3.7 km from north to south is the most beneficial condition.
In addition, the population of 75,000 is close to that of the administration and citizens, and is suitable for the realisation of the ‘Minnano Melchari’ participatory shared cycle scheme that we are aiming for, which led us to this agreement.

■ Minnano Merchari
The Mercari Group Inc. started the ‘Mercari for Everyone’ demonstration experiment in Fukuoka City on 27 February 2018, with the aim of encouraging people to use Mercari in more everyday situations and further promoting the sharing economy in real places. In Fukuoka City, the Melchari concept of ‘Melchari for everyone’ has been realised through the application’s innovations, such as giving incentives to users for reporting violations and moving Melchari outside ports, and by applying mechanisms for individual participation, such as allowing users to register their homes as ports.

In Kunitachi City, Tokyo, which is the latest addition to the Melchari concept, the city has signed an agreement with the local government to further realise ‘Melchari for Everyone’, and is working with the local administration, citizens, local commerce and industry, various local organisations and general companies on a ‘participatory shared cycle’ system that includes local residents in addition to the individuals who have already participated in the system.
The ‘Everybody’s Melchari’ project, in which the local community participates, is currently being planned to enable co-existence and co-prosperity with ‘bicycle dealers’ and ‘companies that operate toll bicycle parking’, whose business is being squeezed by the spread of shared cycling. We are also planning projects that will contribute to the environment, traffic and health, which is the purpose of the Law on the Promotion of Bicycle Use enforced by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. The ‘Melchari for Everyone’ programme pursues the public benefit of the area in which it is implemented together with everyone, regardless of whether they are from within or outside the area.

National City, Flower, Green and Water Section
Kunitachi City, Road Traffic Section
Masayoshi Inoue, Product Manager, Melchari
Kunitachi Cycle https://www.kunitachi-bs.jp/index.html
Karmax Stajima https://www.calmax.jp/home.aspx#topPage
Tamada Ltd. https://kunitachi.shop-info.com/u/36236/cs013/
Kamiyama Bicycle Trading Company https://kunitachi.shop-info.com/u/36236/rt015/
Kunitachi Child and Family Support Centre
Keiko Sasaki, Melchari Consultant

T.M. Project Ltd. Project https://tm-project.com/new/
Kitatama Transport Co. https://www.kitatama.co.jp/
Kunitachi City Chamber of Commerce and Industry https://kunitachi-shokokai.jp/
NPO Kunitachi Fujimidai Human Environment Key Station https://www.human-environment.com/

NPO Kunitachi Sightseeing and Town Development Association https://assoc.kunimachi.jp/
Daichi Ltd. https://daichi-group.co.jp/
Melchari supporter Ms Shiga
Melchari Supporter Ms Sueyoshi
National City Silver Human Resources Centre https://www.kunitachi-sc.or.jp/

■ Merchari port Recruitment
Meru Charity is looking for Meru Charity Reports from individuals, groups and companies alike. Please consider installing a port to attract customers to your shopping association, hospital or shop, to add value to your rental property or to make your home more convenient. Currently, Melchari is only available in Fukuoka City, Kunitachi City in Tokyo and adjacent areas, but we will gradually expand to other areas, so if you are interested, please register here: https://merchari.bike/portowner/

Melchari will continue to work on improving the convenience of the service and will gradually expand to other regions. Currently, the app is only available for iOS; the Android version will be available in early summer 2018.