Free-floating means using shared vehicles (stand-up electric scooters, bikes, sit-down scooters, cars, etc.) by picking them up and dropping them off anywhere within a designated zone. It’s simple: the whole process is managed by an app on your smartphone, including the payment.

What’s the latest trend? Multimodal transport! It means combining different modes of transport to shorten your journey times. There are plenty of apps available to make your life – and your trips round the city – so much easier.

Alongside a fleet of energy-efficient cars in Brussels, Antwerp, Liège, Ghent, Louvain and Mechelen, Poppy also provides vans (at docking stations) as well as electric bikes and stand-up electric scooters. The platform allows you to drive its vehicles from one zone to another and park (for an additional charge) at airports in Brussels, Charleroi, Liège and Antwerp.

Price: free registration
Unlock fee: 1 euro
Cars: from 0.39 euro/min or 0.95 euro/km (+ different day passes), 0.15 euro/min while parked
Vans:  from 0.42 euro/min or 1.02 euro/km (+ different day passes), 0.15 euro/min while parked - Only at docking stations.
Stand-up e-Scooters/Bikes: 0.25 euro/min for cars (+ different day passes), 0.15 euro/min while parked

Cool:
– Choice of energy-efficient vehicles
– All-inclusive price
– You don’t have to pay for parking (except airport parking and vans)!
– You can use vehicles to travel between six cities in Belgium and Charleroi airport
– The app clearly shows which types of vehicle are available, according to how close they are.
Less cool:
– A Poppy vehicle is still a vehicle… so it sometimes gets stuck in Brussels traffic (but you still have the option of a bike or stand-up electric scooter)

Shared-use, free-floating cars (pick up and drop off anywhere during the area covered), charged per km. For longer journeys, hourly and daily rates are also available. The price includes everything: fuel, insurance and parking. AND the app manages everything, including the payment.

Price:
Free registration.
Unlock fee: 1 euro
Use: 0.98 euros per km (from 34 euros for 3 hrs and 39 euros for 6 hrs). While parked: 0.29 euros/min.

Cool:
– Choice of automatic petrol cars
– All-inclusive price
– Free parking
– Pricing based on use
Less cool:
– A Miles car is still a car… so it sometimes gets stuck in the Brussels traffic. However, you still have the option of multimodal transport.

Various models of shared-use vehicles at docking stations (including different sized vans). The vehicle is unlocked using an app, and charges are billed monthly. There are a range of pricing options: per hour, per km, per day, per seven days, etc.

Price:
Registration: single activation fee of 35 euros.
Monthly subscription: 4 euros (occasional use) or 22 euros (frequent use).
Use: depends on the model and subscription. 1.7 to 4.6 euros per km, 0.26 to 0.46 euros per km, etc.

Cool:
– Choice of vehicles of different types and sizes (from S to XL)
– 200 locations throughout Brussels
– App to find and unlock the vehicle
– Very accessible night-time prices
Less cool:
– Pick up and drop off at the same location
– Unwieldy subscription system

These keyless sit-down scooters come with two helmets (with hygienic protection) and insurance cover. A class ‘B’ driver’s licence (or class ‘B’ motorbike licence) is required.

Price:
Unlock fee: 1 euro
Use: 0.33 euro/min.
While parked: 0.10 euro/min

Cool:
– No emissions, no noise
– Get around Brussels quickly and easily
– You can take one passenger (with a helmet)
Less cool:
– Moving around in the Brussels traffic can still be hazardous, especially when people can’t hear you coming. So be careful!

Here too, the times are changing in Brussels… Traditional shared bikes (of the pedal power type) have all but disappeared from the urban landscape. Electric bikes are increasingly seen as the only option for cyclists moving around a city known for its strenuous hills. The electric bikes available in Brussels are often provided by electric scooter operators. Available options in September 2023:

Shared bikes that you pick up and drop off at docking stations. Biggest provider in Brussels: 5 000 bikes (1/3 of these are electric) at 360 docking points. Annual subscription or tickets valid for one day or seven days. To use the electric bikes you need to get an annual subscription and also rent a battery which you store/recharge at home.

Price: depends on subscription: monthly for 3.50 euros or daily for 1.50 euros. The first half-hour is free. The second half-hour is charged at 50 centimes, the third half-hour is 1 euro and each subsequent half-hour costs 2 euros. Optional battery for e-Villo!: 4.50 euros/month in addition to the subscription charge (the battery is delivered to your home and you store/recharge it yourself).

Cool:
– There are Villo! bikes throughout Brussels!
– There are 1 300 more e-Villo! bikes coming, as well as the existing fleet!
– Affordable prices encourage frequent use
Less cool:
– Fairly heavy bikes
– Docking station system

Blue-bike provides bikes at docking stations in most Belgian railway stations (including the South, Central, North and Luxembourg stations in Brussels) and at numerous transport hubs. This means you can get off the train, take a Blue-bike to work or your meeting, then use the same bike to return to the station. Charges for use are paid monthly by direct debit.

Price:
Subscription: 10 euros per month (on the Blue-bike website)
Use: 3.5 euros per day

Cool:
– Blue-bikes are available from all four main stations in Brussels
– Accessible price so you can use them for train-work-train
Less cool:
– Fairly heavy bikes
– Docking station system
– No app

You either love them or hate them. One thing is certain: in Brussels, the shared stand-up electric scooter market is highly competitive. Operators are jostling for position and sometimes they disappear no sooner than they’ve arrived!

At the time of going to press (September 2023), there were seven operators offering electric scooters at a variety of prices (around 0.20 to 0.25 euros/min + unlock fee of 0.75 euros to 1 euro): Bolt, Dott, Lime, Pony, Poppy Tier and Voi.
The Brussels government expects to have only two operators remaining by 2024 with fleets totalling 8 000 scooters rather than the over 20 000 currently in the city.

Cool:
– Fast, low-priced travel around the city!
– Plenty of availability in Brussels
– Recent models introduced by operators are relatively comfortable
Less cool:
– Riding an electric scooter is still hazardous in traffic, so take care!
– Increasing limitations in Brussels (mandatory parking areas, speed limits, prohibited areas, etc.)

A fully app-driven taxi service. You are notified in advance of the estimated price. On arrival, you don’t have to pay anything: the ride is automatically billed by the app and charged to your credit card. All you have to do is rate your driver and the quality of the service.

Price: the app calculates the estimated price of the journey in advance. This may be higher during periods of peak demand (you are informed about the multiplier in advance).

Cool:
– No phone call, no money changes hands: it’s all done by the app
– Available 24/7
– Driver ratings encourage service quality!
– The app covers two services: taxis and meal deliveries
Less cool:
– Prices increase when demand is high

This Brussels-based platform offers the same benefits as Uber: order using the app, you know the price of the journey in advance, payment via the app – but there are a few differences, because you can also pay by bank card or even in cash. Prices are a bit higher than Uber’s, but they are fixed by the meter and don’t increase during peak demand.

Price: the app calculates the estimated price of the journey in advance.

Cool:
- No phone call, no money changes hands: it’s all done by the app
- Around 500 drivers available 24/7 with a choice of several types of vehicle, including wheelchair-accessible ones
- You can hail a Victor Cab in the street by making a ‘V for Victory’ sign!
Less cool:
- Frequently long waiting times for wheelchair-accessible vehicles

Shared night taxi service available every day between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. throughout the Brussels-Capital Region. This is operated by a group of traditional taxis, providing a journey for several passengers at a time who wish to make the same journey. Pick-up is at fixed times and at specified locations (200 points, mostly STIB-MIVB bus stops). They are identified by Collecto signs and can be found using the app, which also lets you reserve and identify your taxi. You can then arrange to be dropped off at your chosen destination for a very affordable price.

Price: six euros per person per journey

Cool:
- Affordable price for getting home safely at night
Less cool:
- Fixed pick-up points and times (similar to public transport)

Plan, book, travel and pay! The Floya app lets you manage your journeys right across Brussels. At the same time, you also get all the benefits of multimodality, of course, while optimising every single journey as well. Once you have worked out your itinerary, just book the various means of transport you need: tram, bus, train, bike, stand-up electric bike, etc. Once you arrive, you can either pay in the app if the operator is integrated, or pay the operator.

Price: free registration. Use: you pay the standard fares and fees charged by each transport provider.

Cool:
– The all-in-one approach that allows you to optimise every single journey
– A personalised solution that suits your preferences
– Smart (and adaptive) guidance throughout your journey
Less cool:
– Honestly, we haven’t found anything!