I am the Guardian’s editor Helen Pidd. I was sceptical about Manchester’s new hire bikes, fearing they would all end up at the bottom of the Ship Canal.

我是卫报的编辑海伦·彼得。我对曼彻斯特新推出的租赁自行车持怀疑态度，我担心它们最终都将沉到运河底。

Yet just a week after Chinese firm Mobike plonked 1,000 bikes on the streets of Manchester and Salford, I’m already a convert. Mobikes are significantly better than London’s hire bikes, or any I’ve tried in other cities across the world. Here’s why:

然而，就在中国摩拜单车公司在曼彻斯特和索尔福德街头投入1000辆自行车的一周后，我的想法就已经改变了。摩拜单车明显比我在伦敦以及世界各地的其他城市试过的租赁自行车都要好。理由如下：

1. You can leave them anywhere.

你可以把它们停在任何地方。

There are no docking stations, so you can just park your Mobike at your destination. You can leave them anywhere within the boundaries of Manchester and Salford, as long as you park them somewhere public that doesn’t obstruct the road or pavement.

摩拜单车没有停放点，所以你就可以把单车停放在你的目的地，而且你可以把它停在曼彻斯特和索尔福德有停车界线的任何地方，只要你停车的地方不会阻塞公用道路或人行道。

2. They’re cheap.

摩拜单车很便宜。

At 50p per half hour, the pricing is low enough that you feel it’s worth a quick spin, even just a five-minute ride that would have taken 20 to walk.

租用摩拜单车半小时只需50便士，定价这么低，你会觉得值得骑上一次，即便只是骑上五分钟，但要是走路你就得花20分钟。

3. They’re fun to ride.

摩拜单车骑起来很有趣。

The single gear is pretty low, so you’ll be pedalling like billy-o if you’re in a rush. And the airless tyres do make for a slightly bone-shaking ride, especially on cobbles. But they’re much nippier than the London bikes, and lighter too.

摩拜单车的单一齿轮很低，所以如果你赶时间的话，你就得使劲骑。实心轮胎确实会使车骑起来有点颠簸，特别是经过用鹅卵石铺的路的时候。但是，比起伦敦的单车，它们要时髦地多，而且也更轻快。

4. The system rewards good behaviour.

摩拜单车的系统会奖励良好品行。

Built into Mobike’s operation is a points system which rewards chivalry and punishes selfishness and anti social behaviour. All users start with 100 credits. If you end up on zero you are barred from using the bikes. If you dob someone in for parking “wrongly”, you get an extra credit.

摩拜单车内置了一个积分体系，该系统会奖励良好品行，并惩罚自私及反社会行为。所有的用户都有100个初始积分。如果你的积分最后归零，你就被禁止使用摩拜单车。如果你举报了某个人停车“不当”，你会得到额外积分。

5. They aren’t a massive drain on public funds.

摩拜单车不会耗费巨额公款。

The London scheme has cost £60m of public money since it launched in 2010. Mobike costs Manchester and Salford city councils diddly squat. They hope the bikes will save them money, because Mobike has promised to share with them data showing where the bikes are most commonly ridden, which should help them plan future cycle infrastructure.

自2010年伦敦推出自行车租赁项目起，这一项目已花费了6000万英镑公款。摩拜单车没花曼彻斯特和索尔福德市政府一分钱，而且他们还希望摩拜单车会为他们省钱，因为摩拜单车承诺会与他们共享数据，向他们展示最常使用自行车的区域信息，这应该会帮助他们规划未来的自行车基础设施。

（翻译：Dlacus）