Turquoise, blue or even yellow spots spread out as far as the eye can see.
In Shenyang, northeast China, thousands upon thousands of bicycles are lined up on a wasteland.
These unused frames, the color of which is associated with a specific brand, recall the sometimes anarchic growth of bicycle-sharing in the country.
Since 2016, Chinese cities have been invaded by these rental bikes, left on any sidewalk after use.
The ultra-simple concept revived the bicycle in China, where it was the main means of locomotion until the 1970s before being gradually supplanted by the car, a symbol of social elevation.
The big Chinese groups have teamed up in recent years to establish themselves in the bike-sharing market before the bubble bursts.
At the beginning of 2018, the Chinese start-up Ofo thus disappeared from the market, crumbling under debt.
With their rise, these mounts have become ubiquitous, sometimes becoming a management nightmare for municipalities.
READ ALSO>
VIDEO.
We bought a racing bike for 93 € on AliExpress (and we regretted it)
Damage to or the theft of shared bicycles is rare in China, but some are abandoned in illegal places and many are piled up near metro entrances. Faced with the scale of the phenomenon, Beijing has for example planned to remove 44,000 bicycles from its urban districts this year, in order to reduce the capital's fleet to 800,000 units.
