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Toronto Bike Share

Making Bikeshare a single regional system would be another example of too much cost too little benefit. Suburban towns can have their own systems if there's a case for it/if they so wish.

Bikeshare works well in Toronto and Montreal because of density and mixed land use. It would be a different story elsewhere in the region and I have no interest in undermining the system we have in the city.
 
Avenue said:
Making Bikeshare a single regional system would be another example of too much cost too little benefit. Suburban towns can have their own systems if there's a case for it/if they so wish.

Bikeshare works well in Toronto and Montreal because of density and mixed land use. It would be a different story elsewhere in the region and I have no interest in undermining the system we have in the city.
Click to expand...

There are a few places in the suburbs where bike sharing could work. And I think they would have to be part of a larger network to be viable and to attract users. as they would need to be anchored to transit hubs. If Metrolinx wanted to set it up, with full compatibility with Toronto's system, that would probably be the best model.

Port Credit is one such place - there's a GO Station, several popular parks, and some higher density housing. Mississauga City Centre as well - but it would need better cycling infrastructure to cross Hurontario Street and Highway 403. Same with central Burlington, extending from the GO Station on the north end to the waterfront and hospital on the south. Unionville/Downtown Markham is another (the GO Station, historic village, the YMCA, Civic Centre, perhaps even Markville Mall).
 
There are two new bike share stations at Yonge + Eglinton

Yonge + Roehampton, and Yonge + Erskine, the latter becoming the northern-most station in the system.

I'm kind of surprised we are getting stations before the St. Clair corridor does.
 
Avenue said:
Making Bikeshare a single regional system would be another example of too much cost too little benefit. Suburban towns can have their own systems if there's a case for it/if they so wish.

Bikeshare works well in Toronto and Montreal because of density and mixed land use. It would be a different story elsewhere in the region and I have no interest in undermining the system we have in the city.
Click to expand...

I think there would be LESS cost for suburban areas to adopt a Metrolinx-run Bike Share. It would also be easy to implement small/test programs without too much capital and commitment.

E.g.... If Brampton wanted to scatter some Bike Share station around Brampton and Bramalea GO stations, they'd just have to get the Metrolinx-run system to install the stations and bikes. No need to deal with other vendors, setting up a local web portal and rental system, etc. It's just done and ready to go. The real beauty would be that anyone in Brampton who subscribes to Bike Share would be able to, for example, use it to ride to the local GO station, then ride from Union Station to work. Metrolinx would probably be happy to do that too, to relieve some of the parking at their stations.

Why have multiple bureaucracies deal with implementing Bike Share programs?
 
vic said:
Metrolinx would probably be happy to do that too, to relieve some of the parking at their stations.
Click to expand...
Or having to provide less of a subsidy for GO riders who take Bike Share instead of local transit to a GO station.
 
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So... Who is running Bike Share Toronto now?

I've recently seen Metrolinx stickers placed officially on the bikes, in a triangular section between the handlebars. I see no mention of Metrolinx on the Bike Share Toronto web site though. However, I also don't see any mention of Toronto Parking Authority anymore. Can't seem to find any relevant new releases either. It says it's operated by Shift Transit (I assume that's just day to day management, not ownership of the program).
 
I've started using Bikeshare for shorter trips now. I live near Parliament and Carlton and wanted to take the subway. Instead of waiting for the unreliable and infrequent 65 bus, I grabbed a bike and rode to Sherbourne Stn.

I was surprised that Sherbourne doesn't have a bike stop closer to the station. The closest are 140m south on Howard St., 270m east on Bloor St., or 250m west to Huntley St.

If Bikeshare can't find a spot at Sherbourne and Bloor, why not instead put the dock directly outside the Glen Road entrance? Right now, if you exit the Glen Road entrance you have about 200m to walk to either the Howard St. or Bloor and Parliament bike docks,
 
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Not Bixi, but there is no thread for this atm so here seemed most relevant.

The electric scooter craze is officially one year old — what’s next?
https://www.theverge.com/2018/9/20/17878676/electric-scooter-bird-lime-uber-lyft

I imagine expanding into winter cities like Toronto is still going to be a challenge for them, but this is a mini-transportation ride-sharing revolution that is happening in warmer cities, and now they are expanding aggressively in fairly temperate cities in Europe (Brussels, Paris, London).

First thought: now that I am aware of the concept, I am kind of into it. I would scooter around for sure.
Second thought: Martin Goodman Trail would become a horror-show.
 
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