Biking in Boston

choo said:
if you have a smartphone, download spotcycle. It's a great app that shows the current status of stations. I do it when choosing between bus or hubway, and its a good way to know how likely that situation is. highly recommended app.
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Things like this are examples of a way Hubway could make more money, restrict the access to the data, create an app, and charge $1 for it. If they want to run it break-even gotta squeeze every penny.

Peterborough
http://www.bostontipster.com
 
Great to see the Boston/Cambridge map getting filled up on both sides!

Odd that Lechmere/Galleria doesn't have one yet, though.
 
At the Cambridge ribbon cutting I thought I heard some mention of the Galleria.
 
I think I'm going to test out the new Cambridge stations today.

Update: So I was able to use the two stations on/near Brattle.

The new maps on the stations indicate there is supposed to be a Hubway near the northern edge of Cambridge Common, but I couldn't find it. It's not on the online map.
 
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Hubway:

Park and Buswell is back!

Two new stations in south Boston, Andrew and South Bay Plaza.

Galleria in Cambridge now has a station too.
 
Oh look, I found out why the endless Hubway delays in Boston came to a quick end this August, Alta is having big problems in Chicago and new York, freeing up stations for us.


Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s plan to make Chicago the nation’s most bike-friendly city has hit a pothole: a bike sharing program that was supposed to offer 3,000 bikes for rental this summer at 300 stations has been put off until next spring.

The delay comes as Inspector General Joe Ferguson continues to investigate a rival bidder’s claim that the bid process was greased for Alta Bicycle Share, an Oregon company that once hired Transportation Commissioner Gabe Klein as a consultant.

Problems with Alta’s newly-developed software have also stalled the company’s 10,000-bike rental program in New York City.

Alta President Alison Cohen did not return repeated phone calls.

She has her hands full in New York, where Mayor Michael Bloomberg has blamed new software used to keep track of rented bikes and accept rider payments for Alta’s failure to deliver the first 1,000 bikes to Big Apple streets by a July 31 deadline.
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http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/...-sharing-program-delayed-until-next-year.html


Im sure many of those stations were lined up in a warehouse in NYC, so Boston should grab as many as they can before they get hogged by bigger cities next year, leaving us with the same issues of constant delays due to supply problems.
 
Their loss=our gain.

I must say I love the Hubway. I met a few friends for drinks in fort point last night, left at 12:45 the T's gray zone. Hubway Fort Point to Fenway <20 minutes. Loved it. Woke up this morning Fenway to Central 10-15 min. On the T that is at least a 45 trip.
 
Newest update. Gold are all expansion stations, ones in red have been added in the last week.

hubway3.jpg
 
choo said:
I must say I love the Hubway. I met a few friends for drinks in fort point last night, left at 12:45 the T's gray zone. Hubway Fort Point to Fenway <20 minutes. Loved it. Woke up this morning Fenway to Central 10-15 min. On the T that is at least a 45 trip.
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My only quibble with the Hubway is that it seems to encourage tourists and suburbanites who are not used to urban cycling to simply hop onto a bike and plunge into a busy road. I'm happy that the Hubway program is complemented by an expanded network of bike lanes, because if not we'll see more people holding up traffic or worse, getting into accidents.

On a semi-related note, how about signs on Hubway stations reminding patrons to ride on the street whenever it is safe to do so? Despite the fact that there are bike lanes on Commonwealth Ave west of Kenmore Square, I still see people riding their bikes on the sidewalk for long distances. And many of these people aren't exactly the most experienced cyclists.
 
b-line200 said:
My only quibble with the Hubway is that it seems to encourage tourists and suburbanites who are not used to urban cycling to simply hop onto a bike and plunge into a busy road. I'm happy that the Hubway program is complemented by an expanded network of bike lanes, because if not we'll see more people holding up traffic or worse, getting into accidents.

On a semi-related note, how about signs on Hubway stations reminding patrons to ride on the street whenever it is safe to do so? Despite the fact that there are bike lanes on Commonwealth Ave west of Kenmore Square, I still see people riding their bikes on the sidewalk for long distances. And many of these people aren't exactly the most experienced cyclists.
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Come Ave has wide sidewalks....so why not? If theyre not experienced, why do you want them on the road?

Its mostly legal to bike on the sidewalk.
 
It's mostly asshole-ish to bike on the sidewalk, too. This program sucks. It encourages amateurs to get on machines they have no business using, jeopardizing the safety of other innocent people at the same time. I can't wait until they fold for the winter.
 
Sidewalks are for walking. Except for a few special cases such as the Route 16 overpass near Alewife, bicycles should be ridden on streets (or bike paths).
 
bbfen said:
It's mostly asshole-ish to bike on the sidewalk, too. This program sucks. It encourages amateurs to get on machines they have no business using, jeopardizing the safety of other innocent people at the same time. I can't wait until they fold for the winter.
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Sometimes the one way nature of the roads in boston require going on sidewalks for a block rather than going around 3 blocks in some cases. Also, While it is valid to say that amateur bikers can be somewhat hazardous, I don't think many people have "no business using" a bike. Everytime I have almost been clipped in a car, on foot, or even by bike, its always been the crazy bike fanatics delivering packages or all latexed out. The amateurs seem at least to be cautious and pay attention.
 
bbfen said:
It encourages amateurs to get on machines they have no business using, jeopardizing the safety of other innocent people at the same time.
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Pearl clutching worry about the scores of innocent Hubway victims aside, the only reason it's remotely dangerous is because the roads are too congested. Take people out of cars and put them on bikes and the roads are less congested and biking is safer. Discourage biking, keep people in cars, and the roads are as congested as ever. It's a vicious cycle!
 
Bike routes can become congested with bikes, which is increasingly the case on the Lalemont trail (Southwest Corridor Park). Cycle congestion can also be fairly dangerous, as different riders with different skills and abilities will tend to ride at wildly different speeds. When congested, especially with two way traffic, this can lead to some very dangerous passing situations. Of course, the pedestrians on the bike path are by far the most dangerous element.
 
I used to be on the "amateurs shouldn't be riding on Boston streets" side, but after Hubway released their first year results listing not a single incident, my opinion changed. Hubway is fantastic and the majority seem to be using it responsibly.
 
Sometimes the one way nature of the roads in boston require going on sidewalks for a block rather than going around 3 blocks in some cases.
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Unless we're talking about major streets such as Boylston, it's usually better to just ride on the street against one-way traffic for that block (always on the right, always with a headlight at night) than to ride on the sidewalk.
 
bbfen said:
It encourages amateurs to get on machines they have no business using, jeopardizing the safety of other innocent people at the same time.
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Funny, the same can be said for many drivers and their cars.
 
Ron Newman said:
Unless we're talking about major streets such as Boylston, it's usually better to just ride on the street against one-way traffic for that block (always on the right, always with a headlight at night) than to ride on the sidewalk.
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Most Boston sidewalks, especially ones on old one-way side streets, are incredibly dangerous sidewalks too -- uneven and loose bricks, utilities sticking up, crooked plant beds, etc.
 
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