Toronto Bike Share

[slicecom]

I think that, in recent months: Bike Share may have been doing little or no rebalancing at all, near the Lawrence West and Eglinton West subway stations in suburban North York. I guess maybe they don't have enough money or staff to afford to do the rebalancing.

Rebalancing costs money. They can probably get better value per dollar by doing most rebalancing in busier areas, like along Yonge Street and Bloor Street.

Is there any good solution?

A.) Should Bike Share increase some or all of its fees, in order to raise more revenue? If so, which fees?

B.) Maybe, when a person buys a yearly membership, Bike Share should consider their home address, and should charge higher membership fees for people farther away from downtown?

C.) Would it make sense to create a premium annual membership? It could cost, say, $200 per year. It could let you make unlimited 60-minute trips on all mechanical bikes. Maybe they could also send you a gold key card with the words "Bike Share Supporter" on it.

A much better solution to rebalancing is a program which rewards people for riding bikes from full racks and docking them into empty ones.

 

[DSC]

A much better solution to rebalancing is a program which rewards people for riding bikes from full racks and docking them into empty ones.

When I want a Bike I want to go from A to B so I am not sure if I would make any effort to go to a dock with more (or less) bikes unless it was VERY close to my desired departure/arrival point. Frankly BikeShare is very cheap so .....

 

[evandyk]

The Bike Share Valet at Bay and King was very busy earlier this week, but this morning's frigid wind put quite a damper on people biking to work.

 

[slicecom]

When I want a Bike I want to go from A to B so I am not sure if I would make any effort to go to a dock with more (or less) bikes unless it was VERY close to my desired departure/arrival point. Frankly BikeShare is very cheap so .....

I ride bike share daily, mostly for fresh air as I work from home, so no commuting. I'd totally spend some time riding bikes from full racks to empty ones if there was an incentive or it was gamified in the app. Thats basically what I do for my daily exercise on my own anyways!

 

[Midtown Urbanist]

I think that, in recent months: Bike Share may have been doing little or no rebalancing at all, near the Lawrence West and Eglinton West subway stations in suburban North York. I guess maybe they don't have enough money or staff to afford to do the rebalancing.

Every morning on average, even though I have three bike share stations within a 2 minute walk to my building, I am walking > 10-15 minutes to find a bike.

They are not rebalancing them much. I thought it would get better with the colder months and there being less competition for bikes in the morning commute, but I am not having much luck.

Even with accounting for the additional walk to find a bike, it is still better than taking the TTC, but I wish it didn't have to be like this.