The Hollywood City Commission recently approved a bike-sharing program that will allow residents to rent bicycles from five locations throughout the City as an alternative form of transportation.
To install the system, the City contracted B-cycle, a bicycle-sharing system that replaces the need for a car for short trips in, and around, urban areas. The company will set up automated, solar-powered bike stations throughout the City where residents simply swipe their cards, grab a bike and get where they are going, returning the bike to the most convenient location and not necessarily the rented location.
Public Affairs and Marketing Director Raelin Storey said the program will have no cost to the City and locations for the bike stations will include the ArtsPark, City Hall, the future Margaritaville site, the Broadwalk at Jefferson Street and the Nevada Parking Lot.
“The program provides another transportation alternative that reduces our dependence on fossil fuels,” Storey said. “It’s not designed for an all-day bike ride. It’s really geared as a mode of transportation.”
Since debuting in Denver, Colorado in 2010, people have utilized B-cycle more than 100,000 times, 43 percent of which replaced a car trip in the city’s downtown area, according to the company’s website. In addition to Denver, B-cycle currently operates in Chicago, Des Moines, San Antonio and Kailua in Hawaii. Boulder, Omaha, Spartanburg and Madison will also soon have the bike-sharing program. The system should be operational in Hollywood before Oct. 1, and there will also be other locations throughout Broward County that offer the bike-sharing program.
The main benefits of the program, according to the B-cycle website, include reductions in pollution and traffic, as well as savings from the rising oil costs. In addition, B-cycle states that it was built to make getting around cities easier, whether it’s grabbing a cup of coffee or commuting to work. Daily, weekly and annual memberships will be available to speed up the process for residents wishing to utilize the service frequently. The Des Moines B-cycle, for example, costs $5.30 for the day, $21.20 weekly, $31.80 monthly and $53 annually. Discounts are also available for students and seniors.
Storey said the City would eventually like to see the bike-sharing program connect to other transportation hubs like Tri-Rail to further B-cycle’s convenience and usefulness.
For more information about B-cycle, visit www.bcycle.com.
