Already in it's second year operating in Nanaimo, the Evolve e-bike and e-scooter program is coming to Parksville in the spring of 2026. (File Photo/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Jordan Davidson

three-year pilot project

Evolve e-bike and e-scooter sharing program coming to Parksville

Nov 16, 2025 | 5:52 AM

PARKSVILLE — Following the successful first two years in Nanaimo, the e-bike and e-scooter sharing program is coming to Parksville in 2026.

During a special council meeting on Nov. 12, councillors voted unanimously in favour of a three-year pilot project to bring the BCAA-sponsored blue Evolve e-bikes and e-scooters to their community, starting in the spring.

Business development manager with Evolve David Holzer said they’ll have approximately 13 dockless station parking zones around the community, with minimal infrastructure required.

“We find specific areas and then geo-fence them to those areas to ensure that the bikes and scooters start and stop, only in these approved spaces…those parking zones act as places where people can start and end their trips.”

They also come with a “stopover” function, allowing a user to temporarily park their bikes not in a designated parking zone to make running errands easier.

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The e-bikes have a range of around 70-90 kilometres, while the e-scooters’ range is around 40-50 kilometres, depending on conditions.

Both are capable of going approximately 25 kilometres per hour.

“We can also create slow and no-ride zones for sensitive areas in the community where you don’t want to see our bikes or scooters, and we manage all of it,” said Holzer. “If a bike gets left outside of a parking zone, if a bike gets stolen or vandalized, we have a team.”

He said they normally partner with a local bike shop in the area or use their own staff to maintain their bikes, with the Nanaimo system already in place.

Holzer said around 50-70 devices are planned for deployment next spring, a mix of e-bikes and e-scooters, with helmets for each.

For the first year in Parksville, they will only be available in the spring, summer, and fall, but they are open to including the winter months in future years.

“We are a group that enters a city very conservatively,” said Holzer. “We take on a smaller footprint in the first year. This way, we can control the devices, we can work on making sure the community accepts the service. We come at it with a small approach for the first year and then based on the results we get in that first year, we start on phase two in year two and three.”

Launched in Nanaimo in 2024, the Evolve program has proven popular among locals and tourists alike, with over half of residents surveyed at the time saying they’ve integrated them into their daily routines.

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