Looks like the summer of 2012 will have more in store than just hot weather. Mayor Bloomberg has approved a bike share program with a company based in Portland, Ore. Now, it's just a matter of working out the details. Once implemented, it will become the largest bike share program in the country. Will it work, or will this just be one more opportunity to loot the merchandise and ruin the good green vibes?
See the excerpt from The New York Times below:
New York Chooses Company to Run Bike-Share Program
By CHRISTINE HAUGHNEY
Published: September 14, 2011
"The Bloomberg administration announced Wednesday it had selected a Portland, Ore., company to run an ambitious bike-share program in New York City, but don’t break out the spandex cycling shorts just yet.
Amid unease about exactly how the city will integrate 600 rental stations and 10,000 bicycles into the crowded streets and sidewalks of New York, the official rollout date of the program has been pushed back until the summer of 2012.
Many other kinks and details are still to be worked out, like the pricing structure and the exact locations of the rental stations. Also missing are the requisite major sponsors to help defray the cost of the program. But when fully implemented, the program would become the largest bike-share effort in the country.
The selection of Alta Bicycle Share was announced at a news conference at a pedestrian plaza in the Flatiron district, where a sample bike station — a kiosk and a rack of sturdy, utilitarian bicycles — was on display.
The bicycles were not built for speed: they have only three gears, and none of them are fast. Think Ford Crown Victorias on two wheels.
“It’s a heavy bike. It can handle the city streets pretty well,” said Caroline Sampanaro, who works for the advocacy group Transportation Alternatives and who has ridden these types of bikes in Paris and Washington. “It’s designed so even the very best bike rider can only go so fast.”
The program will encourage participants to purchase long- or short-term memberships that include an unlimited number of trips of up to 45 minutes; additional fees will apply for longer trips. A yearly membership will cost $100 or less; other pricing details have yet to be made final.
The rental stations will be situated in Manhattan, south of 79th Street, and in selected neighborhoods in Brooklyn. Alta said it was exploring options for adding stations in other areas of the city."
Click here to read more.
Image courtesy of Alta Bicycle Share Blog.
This is a good project. very good to health and very Eco-friendly.
Joyce
Posted by: Entertainment News Philippines | September 15, 2011 at 08:42 PM