The Egyptian government has adopted a bicycle-sharing scheme in Cairo to encourage the residents of the city to use bikes as an affordable and environmentally friendly means of transportation.

The agreement was signed by Cairo Gov. Atef Abdel Hamid and Rania Hedeya, the program manager of UN-Habitat Egypt, in July. The project, titled “Bicicletta,” will channel 30 million Egyptian pounds ($1.7 million) for the next three years to the bike-share project in Cairo. It is funded by Drosos Foundation, a Zurich-based nonprofit organization.

Under the scheme, UN-Habitat and local authorities will cooperate on determining where to construct bike lanes and where to place bike stations so that the residents of Cairo can easily rent them. They will also jointly select a local social enterprise to manage and operate the bike-sharing model.

Hamid told local media during the signing of the agreement, “We are researching suitable areas for bike stations where cars are not allowed or are few in number.” He cited as possible venues el-Moez area in Old Cairo, Sarraya el-Azbakiya Street, Al-Alfi Street, Ahmed Orabi Square in downtown Cairo, as well as places near Cairo University and Ain Shams University where more young people can use the service.