Weather-wise, there probably aren't too many North American cities more different than Toronto and Miami Beach. But they both suffer the same problems with traffic congestion.
This spring, both cities are trying to tackle that problem with bike-sharing systems designed to encourage people to use bicycles, instead of cars, for short errands and commuting.
Miami Beach launched its bike-share program this week that makes 200 lime-green beach cruiser-style bicycles available to the public. It expects the program to grow to 1,000 bicycles available at 100 solar-powered stations by the end of the summer.
Toronto, on the other hand, is launching its bike-sharing system beginning May 3. The program will start with 1,000 bicycles in the downtown area that will be available at 80 locations.
Meanwhile, even the University of Alaska – Fairbanks, will start offering a small-scale bike rental program beginning in April. The university will make 20 new mountain bikes, and as many as 100 used bikes, available for short-term and long-term rental.
More cities
The list of US cities with bike-sharing programs is getting longer. Miami Beach joins a group that includes Washington DC, Denver, and Minneapolis. Boulder, Colorado, and Madison, Wisconsin, both have plans to join the bike-sharing club soon.
In Canada, the Montreal Bixi program has been running since 2009, and Ottawa is set to start bike share later this year.
The Toronto plan is called Bixi Toronto and is supplied and operated by the same outfit that runs the bike share system in Montreal — Bixi. Users pay an annual fee, then have free use of the bicycles for 30 minutes. That enables someone to run a short errand. Extra charges are levied for longer rides.
Miami Beach is calling its system DecoBike, but the pricing is essentially the same. Residents can get a monthly pass for $15 (3 month minimum) and have unlimited use, although the bikes must be checked in at a bike station every 30 minutes to avoid extra charges. There are separate membership plans for non-residents.
Further down the line, New York City, Philadelphia and San Francisco are in the early planning stages for bike sharing.
See also, “Bike-sharing coming to Boulder and Madison this year.”
Also, see the Seattle Bike Share proposal by University of Washington students, and read about it at Seattle Bike Blog.
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