Edhat Staff
By edhat staff
Electric bicycle docks are now being installed throughout downtown Santa Barbara for bike rentals starting next year.
The program is operated by Bcycle who will provide and maintain 250 electric bicycles and 30 stations located throughout downtown and the waterfront areas, with the possibility to expand to other neighborhoods.
Members of the public will be able to unlock a bicycle using a mobile phone app that charges a rental fee based on the time used and can be returned to any dock location.
“Communities with bike share programs have reported many benefits including increased health and wellness for its communities, a zero carbon emission choice for transportation as well as increased patronage of businesses near the bike dock locations,” stated the Downtown Santa Barbara Organization in an email.
The in-street bike dock locations for the initial pilot program in the downtown area include:
Bank of the West, Night Lizard Brewery, Lululemon, Montecito Bank & Trust, Paseo Nuevo, Restoration Hardware, Carlitos, The Apple Store, the previous Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, Energy Tattoo, The Habit Burger Grill, CVS, Old Navy, Natasha and Msky.
Downtown businesses are also able to purchase an annual membership for employees to use the program.
The Bcycle app can be downloaded in the App Store or Google Play Store.
The program is expected to officially launch early next year.
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I am so glad that this is FINALLY happening. All over Europe there are bike-share programs, and have been for years and years. I don’t know why it takes so long for a completely eco-conscious city like Santa Barbara to take so long to catch on. It’s like we lea the nation in talking-the-talk, and up until now not talking-the-talk. The bikes appear to be of high quality, but I wonder about the plan to mitigate the damage inflicted on cycles, theft, slashed tires/seats, and so on My guess is that somewhere hidden within the cycle is a GPS tracker when some yahoo decides to cut one loose and throw it into Mission Creek when done joy riding. SB is such a cycle-friendly city, and I hope this program is a success (unlike those little scooters littering sidewalks/streets and dumped into the bushes.
Another sell out of the city to the business people. What possesses the staff and elected officials to buy into the idea that private for profit enterprises have any interest other than feathering their own pockets? Putting these installations in spaces that the public ordinarily and regularly uses is pretty awful. Worse than allowing restaurants to usurp public sidewalks to the inconvenience of pedestrians. But this smacks of the work of the bicycle mafia that has infiltrated city hall. They are on a crusade to impose their values and likes on the rest of us. I like bicycles. But I don’t see that this is that beneficial to our community. Electrified bicycles are minimal at providing “exercise” and the increased proliferation of a group that has never thought it should obey traffic and other laws is threatening. No one can really suppose that the use of these machines will, for example, reduce commuting time, lighten automobile loads on the highways, or make us healthier. It is sort of like putting in zip lines in otherwise pristine places. Fun for the visitor and profitable for the vendor but not so good for the world around them.
In addition, RHS, there’s are private e-bike rental stores in Santa Barbara, one of which is on 500 block; another a block or so away. I wonder how they like have the competition from the City Council-supported ebikes?!
Will people be able to coast all the way down state to cabrillo? Currently you can’t, I would be pissed as tourist if I was cruising down towards the beach and then all of student had to dismount or face a fine. They will need to work out some bike lanes but that should be easy when all the restaurants and shops on state start closing from not making any money. SB are you listening? You can’t have more tourist without a reason for them to come or are you expecting people to come visit SB to see the luxury apartments you plan on building all down State St?