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800 Maynard Ave S, Suite 200, Seattle, WA 98134
800 Maynard Ave S, Suite 200, Seattle, WA 98134
b) Perfect gift idea! I signed up the BF and now bday is taken care of.
@1: like car2go -- god, I hadn't even thought about the fact that it'll be impossible to get one on the hill after the Amazon commute. And for the reverse problem: I just looked at the FAQs, and they'll give you a 15-min credit if a station is full when you attempt to return it (time to get to another station), but still...it means you park your bike where you don't want to be.
Murray clearly picked him in part because of his history with the bike share.
I rode one last weekend and it rode nicely. I wouldn't ride one for STP, but to get four miles from downtown to the U District, these will work just fine.
I rode these in San Fran when I was there for work. The actual bike rental shops had short hours, and you have to get to one first, perhaps on a bike. I only needed the bike for short trips, and wanted to put it back when I didn't need it. The experience of getting the bikes out and returning to the kiosks was pretty slick.
I have my own bikes where I live, but not when I'm on vacation or traveling for work. If they had this where I live, I'd use it like I use zipcar, and use it for occasional times when my normal transport is in the shop, or it's in a superconvenient location and I didn't have my regular bike for some reason.
If 30 minutes seems short, know you can daisy chain your rides; I did that to get across town diagonally. Return one bike and immediately take out another and keep riding.
I have no interest in membership, not because I hate bikes, but because I already own a bike. Two, in fact. If I want to bike somewhere, I can already do that. So this caters to... people who don't own a bike? How many non-bikers are likely to fork over money to bike share?
Plus, my friends who don't have their own bikes can now ride with me! Hooray more friends on bikes!
Thanks for the examples. I feel more enlightened already. I guess I was being pretty narrow minded in my bike use.
Shame, then, that Pronto appears to be run by morons: The coverage area is nonsensical (including in their long-term plans). The station apportionment is asinine. And thanks to a financial relationship with Children's Hospital -- perpetual floggers of discredited overstatements of helmet efficacy -- Pronto has become a willing participant in our local culture of anecdotes-over-facts helmet orthodoxy.
Thus, a "free" 30-minute trip (on a slow, upright, low-center-of-gravity bike that renders dangerous maneuvers all but impossible) now requires a $2 helmet rental every fucking time, or you might get tackled by a cop while riding!
Seattle has never met a worthwhile idea, with ample worldwide precedent, that it couldn't fuck up in implementation.
"Thanks for joining the SCHEME-NAME! .. Welcome to the SCHEME-NAME! ..
If you need help or have any questions, please contact us at SCHEME-PHONE-NUMBER or by email at SCHEME-EMAIL.
Thanks for joining the SCHEME-NAME and happy riding!
The SCHEME-NAME team
https://www.prontocycleshare.com
(the signup process is secure, tho)
BTW, I also own a bike. I just got tired of hauling it down the stairs when the freight elevator is broken, and having to carry a lock everywhere.
I hope this works out. I'm not it's target market because I'm already on a bike all the time, but it's always nice get more people riding.
Why? The FAQ is illuminating:
The key to understanding this explanation is realizing that they are talking not about human density, but about wealth density. The program is not being driven by the transportation needs of the people who live here, the program is being driven by the "need" to keep money flowing into the program.
However, I'm a little disappointed in the exclusion of Ballard and Fremont. I live in the former, work in the latter. I'll hold off on signing up until it's in those neighborhoods, but I'll be cheering for its success in the meantime.
Oh, and the ridiculous helmet law needs repealed. These bikes are slow and upright by design, and hardly dangerous. If the system will fail for any reason, it'll be that people don't want to pay the extra $2/ride to rent a helmet.
The Pronto bikes are too heavy for novice riders.
So-called "intuitive" gear changers might be useful, as many will ride in one gear all the time. Silly.
And I agree, the limited range is disappointing. GPS in each bike might be interesting for data collection of trips, stations, "rest stops" and the inevitable [Stolen Pronto] episodes.
The Pronto bikes are too heavy for novice riders.
So-called "intuitive" gear changers might be useful, as many will ride in one gear all the time. Silly.
And I agree, the limited range is disappointing. GPS in each bike might be interesting for data collection of trips, stations, "rest stops" and the inevitable [Stolen Pronto] episodes.
The bikes are hardly racers with a mere three gears that keep speeds down but allow the weaker bikers to conquer hills (we do have a few here in the Midwest) but they are easy to handle. A couple years ago the program even sponsored a free helmet day.
Good luck Seattle, I think you're going to like them
Some cities have relaxed their helmet laws specifically for users of upright bikes over a certain weight, in anticipation of initiating bike shares.
Without exception, the total -- not per capita, per rider, or per trip, but total -- number of bike-related injuries (including head injuries) has dropped in cities with successful programs.
But do get them potholes fixed sooner than later! My foot got stuck in one recently while crossing the street. They are a hazard to all: pedestrians, bikes, and cars.