Bike Nation, City of Long Beach Announce Plans to Launch Large Bike Sharing Program

The City of Long Beach and Bike Nation are teaming up to launch one of the largest bike share programs in California.

“This state-of-the-art Bike Share program will serve local residents, businesses and visitors,” Mayor Bob Foster said. “Bicycling is helping to promote business growth as well as a healthy, active lifestyle. And this new partnership will continue to move us forward to becoming the most bicycle friendly city in the nation.”

The privately funded program, approved by the Long Beach City Council on Tuesday, August 21, will include up to 250 kiosks and 2,500 bikes, with initial installations expected to begin in February of 2013 in Downtown Long Beach.

“The City of Long Beach has long been considered a leader in investment in bike infrastructure, creating safer roads for its riders and cleaner air for its residents,” said Derek Fretheim, Bike Nation Chief Operating Officer. “Bike Nation is proud to provide Long Beach residents and visitors alike with a low-cost, healthy time-friendly transportation option that will be connective to the City of Los Angeles and Anaheim systems.”

The City of Long Beach will provide locations in the public right-of-way for the bike share stations. Bike Nation has proposed to invest $12 million to develop a safe, dependable, efficient, and environmentally sustainable bike share program in the city, with no out-of-pocket costs to the City.

The system is made up of self-service kiosks where individuals can rent and return a bicycle anywhere within a network of stations. Stations are located in close proximity for quick trips where users live, work and visit. The usage fees for the bicycle share system are incentivized for quick turnover and trips of less than 30 minutes in duration with a single 24-hour membership priced at $6, with discounts for three-day ($12), weekly ($25), monthly ($35), yearly ($75) and yearly student/senior rentals ($50).

City staff will work with Bike Nation to identify sustainable destination hubs, which will be based on a number of factors, including tourism and retail stimuli. The program will roll out in Downtown Long Beach, and then expand to other neighborhoods. The bike system will be designed to complement the Long Beach Transit Bus System and the Metro Blue Line, providing an important “first-mile – last-mile” link to these transportation systems.

“We see bike sharing as another element to enhance the overall visitor experience and are impressed with Bike Nation’s commitment to develop a first-class program that will help us showcase Long Beach and all of its great waterfront attractions,” said Steve Goodling, Long Beach Area Convention & Visitor’s Bureau President. “Long Beach will now have a first-class mobility system, allowing conference guests and visitors to see other parts of the city and have a greater overall experience.”

The bikes are chainless and feature active GPS technology and airless tires, helping reduce the need for on-road service. The kiosks are modular, portable, wirelessly connected and solar powered so that monitoring and load balancing is easily managed.

Learn more at bikenationusa.com and bikelongbeach.org