April 08, 2010B-cycle bike-share program makes Denver a roll modeGreen technology - Denver B-cycle kiosks in dozens of locations around the city will allow residents and visitors to check out bikes and tour the city starting April 22. Earth Day 2010 — April 22 — will be a fitting opening day for Denver's B-cycle. Riders will pay a small fee to access hundreds of bikes at 38 kiosks placed at high-traffic sites near bus stops and light-rail stations in downtown Denver, as well as the Cherry Creek, University of Denver, Capitol Hill and Golden Triangle neighborhoods. But bring your own helmet. Denver needs up to 400 volunteers to help out, but interested parties must act fast. The deadline for filling out an online application at bikedenver.org is tonight. B-cyle intends to be "multimodal." The idea: Leave your car at home, take a light rail or bus into the city, then bike to work or other errands. Reverse it to get back home. Denver's launch with an expected 400 bikes will make it the first large- scale bike-sharing program in the nation, on par with international programs in Paris and Montreal. Washington's bike-sharing program has 100 bikes. "This isn't just for those who identify themselves as cyclists," says Piep van Heuven, Bike Denver's executive director. "It's a fantastic opportunity for citizens, residents and visitors coming to Denver to celebrate the historic day that Denver becomes the first city to launch a large-scale bike system." A pricing structure is available on the newly launched denver.bcycle.com. Participants pay for membership and bike- usage fees, says Parry Burnap, executive director of Denver Bike Sharing. A 24-hour membership is $5; seven-day is $20; 30-day is $30; and an annual membership costs $65. Students and seniors ages 65 and up can receive discounts, bringing their annual rate to $45. Usage fees apply per ride. If bikers can get to their destination and return their cycle to a kiosk in under 30 minutes, the ride is free. But the charge begins to escalate after 31 minutes, starting at $1.10 with a daily max capped at $65. If you, um, forget, to bring the bike back, it will cost $1,000 to replace. And that's a direct debit right out of the credit card you listed when you signed up. Lose a B-card? That's a $5 fee. And it costs $10 to replace a B-cycle key. Sign up for an annual membership and get a coupon toward the purchase of a helmet at Bicycle Village stores. The discounted price is $26.99. "Stats show that 49 percent of Americans' trips are about 3 miles," says Burnap. "You can easily bike that and save your car, better your health and protect the environment. This is not an anti-car movement. It's just being more thoughtful about how you get around." Members must provide credit card info. Only program members can check out the signature red B-cycle with a basket. Members can register online or at a kiosk. Annual members will be mailed a B-card that unlocks the bikes. The program even provides an opportunity for green bragging rights. GPS and other wireless technologies associated with the system allow users to track how many miles they've ridden, calories burned and estimated carbon footprint savings earned. Use a smartphone to see if a dock is full or where space is available. The program is considering monthly contests to give away T-shirts and other goodies to the eco-conscious riders. "There's a real social networking element to this," Burnap says. Laptops will be made available at some sites for program registration. At least two volunteers will be available at each site to explain how to operate the kiosk system, hold bike demonstrations, answer questions about navigating downtown on a bike and to distribute free-ride passes. Training sessions will be held several days prior to the program launch. Volunteers are asked to work two or more times during the four launch days at peak travel times, including shifts from 7 to 9 a.m, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4 to 6 p.m. Sheba R. Wheeler: 303-954-1283 or [email protected]
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