Thursday, July 14, 2011

Hubway is Here!

I don't know exactly when it went live, but the new Boston bike share system website is up!
I checked it out a couple of days ago when they asked for input on station locations (when is cambridge coming on I wonder...)
Annual memberships are $85, although pre-enrollment is $ 60.  I'm not sure when the stations are actually opening, but I suspect any day now!

I'm slightly tempted to buy a membership just to promote it,  but on the other hand, I rarely don't have my bike.    A couple of weeks ago though, I had not ridden in because it was pouring when I left in the morning.  In the afternoon, I needed to meet someone on the Longfellow bridge.   I ran out of time to take the T,  so I ended up taking a cab :(    The bikeshare would have been perfect as a way to get there quickly and simply.
A compromise might be to sign up for a pre-enrolled membership this year ( thinking of it almost as a charitable donation to support a good cause)  and then using the 24 hour passes when the need strikes after the first year.

One demographic that I think would really be well served by this is people living in teeny tiny apartments without a place to store a bike.  I was at a jobsite in Beacon Hill this afternoon,  and bike parking is made tough by all the "ye-olde" lamp posts and signs (too big to fit a lock around),  and the lack of parking meters.  Apartments are small there, and elevators are infrequent.  If I lived there, a bike share might be a better solution for getting downtown than dealing with the hassles of storing a personal bike.

4 comments:

  1. How exciting that Boston is also getting an Alta bikeshare program! I like your note about thinking about a membership as a chairtable donation. That is exactly how I use my Capital Bikeshare membership! I so rarely use CaBi, as it has come to be know in DC, but having a membership gives me the feeling that I'm supporting something I DO feel strongly about.

    That being said, more helpful uses for BikeShare systems:
    - bike one-way to the bars!
    - bike to meet friends, but when moving from spot to spot in the city you no longer have to lug your bike around!
    - going on vacation or staying somewhere for a couple days? Don't lock your bike up in an unsafe area...take bikeshare!

    One last note: Zipcar has perfected the car sharing program, really and truly. One of the best things about it? I can go on vacation to Seattle and - because my Zipcard is universal - I can share a car in Seattle. If we could get Alta to agree to reciprocity for tourists, it would be a perfect system! I've emailed Alta about it, but not yet heard back.

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  2. I've been rideless this past week as both bikes are in the shop, and I've been pining (pining!) for the Hubway to get here already. The connections to Cambridge are still pretty vague though, so in reality, I don't know how much I'll use it, especially if phase one really is just going to be south of the river.

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  3. This was ob Boston.com regarding Hubway expansion into Cambridge.

    http://www.boston.com/yourtown/news/cambridge/2011/07/bicycle_sharing_could_come_to.html

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  4. Moopheus,
    Yes, I saw that. I did a quick google search on the guy who complained about almost getting hit by a biker on the sidewalk, and it sounds like he's perennially good for a cranky soundbite- a constant candidate for cambridge city council and I guess what you would call a "gadfly".

    Hope it happens soon- I could use it today when I ended up getting a ride into work by the Scientist but would like to ride home despite the heat.

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