Overcoming the Challenges of Winter Bike Share. Phil Goff, Sr. Associate and Director of Bike Share Services 2/3/15

Transcription

1 Overcoming the Challenges of Winter Bike Share Phil Goff, Sr. Associate and Director of Bike Share Services 2/3/15

2 Presentation AGENDA Why a year round program is important The geography of seasonal programs The challenges to moving beyond seasonal Strategies for expanding operations

3 What is bike share? Fleet of shared bikes, accessible to members Member accounts connected to a credit card account Bikes available for a free period usually minutes or additional fee Short, point to point trips Perfect compliment to transit

4 Year round bike share vs. seasonal Benefits of a year round bike share program: Functions truly like a transit system Predictability for annual/monthly members and casual users Avoids need to re deploy every spring Additional visibility and awareness of bicyclists throughout the winter

5 The geography of seasonal programs

6 The geography of seasonal programs Seasonal programs with partial winter operations Madison B Cycle winter pilot: 6 of 40 stations Hamilton SoBi winter pilot: 200 of 750 bikes deployed Hubway Year round system in Cambridge 50% of Boston stations open thru December 31

7 Three Approaches to Partial Operations 1. Less Dense Network o Madison B Cycle: Pilot w/ 6 of 40 stations through the winter 2. Limited Service Area o Hubway: 50% of Boston stations through December; 100% year round in Cambridge (36 of 140 stations) 3. Fewer Bikes Deployed o Hamilton SoBi: Pilot with 200 of 750 bikes through the winter o Divvy: 33% of fleet in storage o Pittsburgh Healthy Ride: 50% of the fleet in storage

8 The geography of seasonal programs City System Name Equipment Type City(ies) Population Current Number of bikes Operations Average Temp. (F) Average Winter Low (F) Annual Snow Fall Boulder, CO Boulder B Cycle Dock 101, bikes (38 stations) Annual " Montreal, QU Bixi Dock 3,824,221 5,000 bikes (460 stations Seasonal " Ottawa, ON VeloGo Dock + Smart Lock 870, bikes (50 stations) Seasonal " Salt Lake City, UT GREENBike B Cycle Dock 189, bikes (20 stations) Seasonal " Minneapolis, MN Nice Ride Dock 7,000, bikes (190 stations) Seasonal " Denver, CO Denver B Cycle Dock 634, bikes (83 stations) Annual " Madison, WI Madison B Cycle Dock 240, bikes (35 stations) Annual (Partial Winter Operations) " Fargo, ND Great Rides Bike Share Dock 113, bikes (11 stations) Seasonal " Toronto, ON Bixi Dock 2,800, ikes (60 stations) Annual " Milwaukee, WI Bublr Bikes Dock 599, bikes (10 stations) Annual " Hamilton, ON SoBi Smart Lock 740, bikes (115 stations) Annual (Partial Winter Operations) " Greater Boston, MA Hubway Dock 878,786 1,300 bikes (140 stations) Annual (Partial Winter Operations) " Pittsburgh, PA Healthy Ride Dock + Smart Lock hybrid 306, bikes (50 stations) Annual " Chicago, IL Divvy Dock 2,715,000 3,000 bikes (300 stations) Annual " New York City, NY Citibike Dock 8,344,000 6,000 bikes (332 stations) Annual " Philadelphia, PA Indego Dock 1,549, bikes (72 stations) Annual " Boise, ID Boise GreenBike Smart Lock 214, bikes (15 stations) Annual " Washington, DC Capital Bikeshare Dock 1,010,450 2,900 bikes (346 stations) Annual "

9 The geography of seasonal programs City System Name Equipment Type City(ies) Population Current Number of bikes Operations Average Temp. (F) Average Winter Low (F) Annual Snow Fall Boulder, CO Boulder B Cycle Dock 101, bikes (38 stations) Annual " Montreal, QU Bixi Dock 3,824,221 5,000 bikes (460 stations Seasonal " Ottawa, ON VeloGo Dock + Smart Lock 870, bikes (50 stations) Seasonal " Salt Lake City, UT GREENBike B Cycle Dock 189, bikes (20 stations) Seasonal " Minneapolis, MN Nice Ride Dock 7,000, bikes (190 stations) Seasonal " Denver, CO Denver B Cycle Dock 634, bikes (83 stations) Annual " Seasonal Programs Annual Programs Average Temperature Winter Low Temperature Annual Snow Fall (inches) 45 degrees (F) 16 degrees (F) 57 Madison, WI Madison B Cycle Dock 240, bikes (35 stations) Annual (Partial Winter Operations) " Fargo, ND Great Rides Bike Share Dock 113, bikes (11 stations) Seasonal " 52 degrees (F) 24 degrees (F) 39 Toronto, ON Bixi Dock 2,800, ikes (60 stations) Annual " Milwaukee, WI Bublr Bikes Dock 599, bikes (10 stations) Annual " Hamilton, ON SoBi Smart Lock 740, bikes (115 stations) Annual (Partial Winter Operations) " Greater Boston, MA Hubway Dock 878,786 1,300 bikes (140 stations) Annual (Partial Winter Operations) " Pittsburgh, PA Healthy Ride Dock + Smart Lock hybrid 306, bikes (50 stations) Annual " Chicago, IL Divvy Dock 2,715,000 3,000 bikes (300 stations) Annual " New York City, NY Citibike Dock 8,344,000 6,000 bikes (332 stations) Annual " Philadelphia, PA Indego Dock 1,549, bikes (72 stations) Annual " Boise, ID Boise GreenBike Smart Lock 214, bikes (15 stations) Annual " Washington, DC Capital Bikeshare Dock 1,010,450 2,900 bikes (346 stations) Annual "

10 Moving beyond a seasonal program Key Challenges Snow clearing policies/procedures Winterized bike infrastructure Operations/wear and tear Policy/funding challenges Concerns about low use User concerns about snow/ice, safety and cold weather

11 Snow clearing policies and procedures

12 Snow clearing policies and procedures Citibike System 72 hours after 26 of snow

13 Snow clearing policies and procedures The work of Motivate s contractors for Hubway in Cambridge

14 Snow clearing policies and procedures Storm Preparations Pittsburgh: place 60% of fleet in storage, lock the rest Chicago: rarely shuts down system (2x in 2 years) NYC & Cambridge: with >12 of snow, locks down entire system Snow Clearance Pittsburgh & Milwaukee: nonprofit does all shoveling Chicago: done by vendor; prioritized list of key stations Cambridge: vendor shovels and spreads non corrosive ice melt; vendor paid per inch of snow, City pays Motivate fixed price per season

15 Operational issues Low Temperatures Pittsburgh: some problems with batteries, shifters and brakes freezing Madison: most stations left inplace, winterized, with computer hardware removed Cambridge: bikes removed with dock cleared of snow/ice to prevent freezing Dealing with salt on roads Pittsburgh: corrosionresistant spray on bikes and cold rated lube within hubs Cambridge: uses rust buster chains, frequently lubed Cambridge and Chicago: hand cleaning of bikes & stations on regular basis (both avoid power washing due to ice) Cambridge: one van full of bikes to the shop each night

16 Winterized bicycle infrastructure Chicago Hit or miss in Cambridge

17 Policy/funding challenges Milwaukee Bublr Non profit s mission is to provide transportation year round Cambridge Hubway 2012: 80% of 24 station launch was off street 2013: surveys showed clear desire for winter service 2014: Recalculated donor costs for winter operations (no add l costs for users) New Hubway curb extension in Cambridge

18 Policy/funding challenges Winter Operations Cost related PRO S o No removal and storage of equipment required o Revenues related to walkup rentals o Minimal rebalancing due to lower use Winter Operations Cost related CON S o Additional wear and tear on bikes and stations o Additional replacement of batteries o Station snow clearance (need for additional staff or contractors)

19 Concerns about low use Citibike Summer peak: 1.2 million/month Winter low: 0.2 million/month (17% of peak)

20 Concerns about low use Citibike

21 Concerns about low use Divvy Summer peak: >500k/month Winter low: 50k/month (10% of peak)

22 Concerns about low use Hubway Cambridge Summer peak: 38k/month Cambridge Winter low: 5 10k/month (15 25% of peak)

23 Concerns about low use Hubway Cambridge Summer peak: 12k/month Cambridge Winter low: <500/month (<5% of peak)

24 Concerns about low use Others Milwaukee Bublr o 5500 trips in Oct o 1600 trips in Dec o Madison B Cycle o 16,257 trips in July 2015 (29 trips/dock/month) o 356 trips in Jan (3.6 trips/dock/month, 12% of July peak)

25 User concern about safety and cold Web site and Social Media Strategy Winter Rider Safety Pittsburgh Winter Riding Tips NYC, Cambridge, Madison Divvy in the Winter riding tips and explanation of services provided by Divvy

26 User concern about safety Low gearing for slow speeds Heavy bike (40-45 lbs) = stability Upright position w/ good visibility Wider tires (in Madison, knobby tires for winter) Hub roller brakes for all-weather stopping Built-in lights and generator

27 Divvy s winter marketing programs #HOLIDIVVY Unicorn Bike campaign Winter themed prizes Mid winter free meal for new members

28 Divvy s winter marketing programs #DIVVYON Custom hashtag to connect riders and collect winter images

29 Divvy s winter marketing programs Winter Ridership Contest during lead in to 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia Gold Medal: Awarded to any member who took 50+ trips Silver Medal: Awarded to members who took 25+ trips Bronze Medal: Awarded to members who took 5+ trips All medalists were announced on Divvy web site and Social Media

30 Divvy s winter marketing programs Leveraging the Media Divvy Data Challenge: celebrates the release of yearend data, which engages members, tech community and media Member survey: findings released during winter to drum up press

31 Key Lessons for year round service If possible, bring in third party vendor for snow/ice clearance Plan for off street station sites Expect 15 20% of peak use Frequent cleaning a must Winterize bike if necessary Market and promote winter riding like crazy