Between 30 and 40 bike locations will be set up in Hai Chau, Ngu Hanh Son and Son Tra Districts, each with five to 10 bikes. These would be placed near key roads and bus stops to better connect with the city’s public transport system and tourism spots, the city's Transport Department said on Monday.

Bike-exclusive lanes will be designated on Bach Dang, Tran Phu, Nguyen Van Linh, Hung Vuong, Le Duan, Tran Hung Dao, Vo Nguyen Giap, Pham Van Dong, Vo Van Kiet and Nguyen Van Thoai Streets, it said.

The new service would be managed by a smart bike system, complete with mobile applications and users can pay for the service by hour, day or month, with cash or via online payment methods.

Da Nang, the urban hub of central Vietnam, is home to more than 1.2 million people and considered the country's third most important city after Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. 

The pilot project comes as the number of personal vehicles in Da Nang grows at 12 percent per year on average for cars and 10.5 percent per year for motorbikes. With the current growth rates, traffic jams would become more frequent and develop into a serious issue in 2020 and beyond if authorities fail to develop sustainable ways to manage traffic, experts have said.

Among other measures, the city plans to develop its public transport system and limit the number of personal vehicles.

Municipal leaders had said in April that VND2 trillion ($86 million) would be spent on making Da Nang a smart city by 2030. Specifically, the city will build a monitoring center, launch smart public services and make data freely available for everyone to use and republish as they wish, without copyright restrictions patents or other mechanisms of control.