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http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080921.wbixi0921/BNStory/National
Public bikes to hit Montreal streets
Canadian Press
September 21, 2008 at 3:47 PM EDT
MONTREAL — Montreal unveiled its new self-service bicycle system Sunday.
The program, named Bixi, will allow residents to borrow bicycles from one station and drop them off at another.
“You grab it, you ride it, you bring it back,†said Montreal's mayor Gerald Tremblay during a news conference. “It will become an emblem for Montreal.â€
Twenty-four hundred bikes will be available at 300 stations in six Montreal boroughs.
The service, based on similar public bike systems in European cities like Paris and Barcelona, will be available in the spring of 2009.
The $15-million system was paid for by Stationnement de Montreal, a company that manages the city's on-street parking. They hope to recoup their investment through membership fees.
Memberships will cost $78 per year, $28 per month, and $5 for the day. A bike can also be borrowed free for 30 minutes.
The bikes, designed entirely in Quebec, are made of 100 per cent recyclable aluminium. The parking stations are also powered by solar energy.
The name Bixi — a combination of the words taxi and bicycle — was chosen as part of a citywide contest in which residents voted on almost 9,000 different names.
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Having lived in 2 European cities that have the same system, I can vouch for how great it is to have this. It completely changed the way I commuted. COMPLETELY. In fact, if I were in N. America right now, I would have started this program myself. And although the membership prices are way to high (In France, you pay 10 euro a year - 5 if you have a transit pass), I would still pay $78 for a yearly membership.
And not to the company managing this service - everywhere else is recouping their investment through ad space at the bike stations, not membership fees ...
Public bikes to hit Montreal streets
Canadian Press
September 21, 2008 at 3:47 PM EDT
MONTREAL — Montreal unveiled its new self-service bicycle system Sunday.
The program, named Bixi, will allow residents to borrow bicycles from one station and drop them off at another.
“You grab it, you ride it, you bring it back,†said Montreal's mayor Gerald Tremblay during a news conference. “It will become an emblem for Montreal.â€
Twenty-four hundred bikes will be available at 300 stations in six Montreal boroughs.
The service, based on similar public bike systems in European cities like Paris and Barcelona, will be available in the spring of 2009.
The $15-million system was paid for by Stationnement de Montreal, a company that manages the city's on-street parking. They hope to recoup their investment through membership fees.
Memberships will cost $78 per year, $28 per month, and $5 for the day. A bike can also be borrowed free for 30 minutes.
The bikes, designed entirely in Quebec, are made of 100 per cent recyclable aluminium. The parking stations are also powered by solar energy.
The name Bixi — a combination of the words taxi and bicycle — was chosen as part of a citywide contest in which residents voted on almost 9,000 different names.
------
Having lived in 2 European cities that have the same system, I can vouch for how great it is to have this. It completely changed the way I commuted. COMPLETELY. In fact, if I were in N. America right now, I would have started this program myself. And although the membership prices are way to high (In France, you pay 10 euro a year - 5 if you have a transit pass), I would still pay $78 for a yearly membership.
And not to the company managing this service - everywhere else is recouping their investment through ad space at the bike stations, not membership fees ...