Biking in Boston

This excellent article covers a lot of ground, discussing the background of Hubway's operations in the city of Boston. (Alta Bike Share is the company that run's Hubway as well as bike systems in other major US cities.)

It does leave out several things I think are important.

* Does the financial difficulties of Bixi/PBSC, Alta/Hubway's Canadian partner, talked about elsewhere put Hubway's operations at risk?

* How was the Alta contract awarded (was it open bid)?

* Does the City of Boston have any liability if (and when) there are accidents and the injured parties are sued; are Alta's financials made available to the City (and, by extension, its taxpayers)?

* Regarding the City's contract, who decides if there is a "profit" (profits are split 50-50 between Alta and Boston) and how often can the contract be renegotiated (or, canceled)?

* Does Alta own the bikes or do they lease them from Bixi? If Bixi goes bankrupt, can it pull all the bikes from Boston?

* Does Alta have an agreement, similar to its agreement with NYC and other cities, that pays a "sponsorship fee" to USA Bike Share before any profits are calculated (thus reducing the potential profits to the City) and who is USA Bike Share?

Hubway a profit-maker for City, bike company
By Peter Shanley, JP Gazette

The Hubway bike-share system is a profit-maker for the City and the Oregon company that operates it, a Gazette review of the program’s finances has found.

For the fiscal year 2012, the City collected $173,835 in profit, all of which was funneled back into expanding the system, according to Boston Bikes Director Nicole Freedman. Alta Bicycle Share, the for-profit system’s operator, put back $86,917 into the system that year.

The City is paying millions of dollars for Hubway, including a $900,000 “launch fee” and escalating annual fees of $750,000 to $820,000. But none of it is coming from City coffers.

“No City money has been spent on Hubway to date. All funding has come from sponsors, advertisers, user fees, memberships and grants,” said Freedman.

Launched in 2011, Hubway is a for-profit venture that allows people to rent bicycles from automated stations around town, with registration available through thehubway.com. It recently expanded to Jamaica Plain.

The City and Alta split Hubway profits 50-50, according to the system contract, which was provided to the Gazette by the Mayor’s Office. The three-year contract requires Alta to put at least half of its profit back into the system for expansion.

While the City is currently putting all of its profit into expansion, that won’t always be the case.

“After the system is full-size, the plan would be that money goes into the City’s general fund,” said Freedman.

She said the City currently has 88 stations and plans to expand to around 225.

Under the Hubway deal, the City owns the bicycles and stations, while Alta is responsible for operations, maintenance and insurance liability.

While sometimes described by officials and the press as a public-private “partnership,” the contract makes it clear it is not. Alta is deemed an independent contractor of the City in the contract.

Hubway’s main income comes from annual membership fees and advertising and sponsorship fees.

Sponsors often pay money to have a station on their land. Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in the Longwood Medical Area pays the City $50,000 for three years for a station there. Freedman said that sponsorship of all stations is the same fee.

Initial donors to the Hubway program, according to contract documents, included various colleges and universities, the Boston Red Sox, and such major developers as Boston Properties and the Fallon Company. Major grant funding came through the MBTA and other sources with the aim of connecting bikes to public transit and ultimately improving public health.

Hubway stations were installed this year in JP at the Jackson Square T Station; at the Green Street T Station; at Monument Square; in front of the post office at the corner of Centre and Myrtle Streets; in Hyde Square at the corner of Centre and Barbara Streets; and in Egleston Square at the corner of Columbus Avenue and Washington Street.

John Ruch contributed to this article
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- See more at: http://jamaicaplaingazette.com/2013...r-for-city-bike-company/#sthash.zLcNZOlE.dpuf
 
She said the City currently has 88 stations and plans to expand to around 225.
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Good. That's about how many they need to cover the neighborhoods in Boston they've tried to serve.
 
A) Glad to hear the financials are working out

B) 2.5 times more stations is going to be great
 
underground said:
Are you talking about the cycle tracks on Commercial? They actually did install bike lanes, and are working on the cycle tracks now. It's getting a lot of neighborhood blow back from the usual suspects though. In any case, the project is... uh... moving along? At least as much as any other project in Boston moves along.
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Yes, cycle tracks had been confirmed for 2010 or 2011. Everyone thought they were going to paint cycle tracks, it was what had been approved at every meeting.

The bike lanes that appeared had never been discussed.
 
^ Bike roundabout: Davis, and Monterey, CA
Bike lane crosswalks = all over NYC
 
Davis, as in Davis Square, or is that another place in CA? Because I've never seen one in Davis Square.
 
Are they making this a 2-way cycle track? The street is one way if I'm understanding it correctly, but only one side has a cycle track? I wonder if they'll put markings down.
 
Residents to talk bike lanes on Seaver Street

By Patrick D. Rosso, Town Correspondent

Seaver Street, one of the busiest thoroughfares in Roxbury, could see a number of changes to improve safety and traffic flow on the roadway.

A public meeting, sponsored by Boston Bikes, will be held Thursday, from 6 p.m.-8 p.m., at the United House of Prayer for All People, at 206 Seaver St.

Thursday’s meeting will concentrate on the “buffered” bike lanes proposed for the roadway. The lanes, which are more protected than a standard bike lane, but less intrusive than a protected cycle track, are expected to run the length of the roadway from Blue Hill Avenue to Walnut Avenue.

Although the bike lanes are just a component of the approximately $6-million project, they have been a sticking point for designers and some residents.

“At the first meeting some bike advocates called for a more protected lane,” explained Bill Egan, chief civil engineer for the city’s Public Works Department. “We looked at a cycle track and there was some resistance from the public about it being on the residential side of the street and how it might impact traffic, parking, and buses. We’ve been going back and forth to find a design that is acceptable.”

While the bike lanes have caused some frustration, they are just a small component of the project that will reduce traffic lanes, improve signals, and revamp the asphalt that sees an estimated 40,000 vehicles daily.

“What we are hoping to do is address the roadway in a way that balances the needs of motorists, bikes, and pedestrians while also improving safety and road conditions for all modes,” explained Matt Mayrl, chief of staff for Public Works.

Including all modes of transit has been a priority for the department that adheres to the city’s Complete Street model, which is now used in all projects including the recent proposed redesign of Dudley Square.

“We want to use the public space in a way that makes it accessible to all modes and gives options to people,” said Mayrl. “It’s a balancing act.”

Although a final design is still in the works, no parking is expected to be lost as a result of the project.

Along with the addition of the improved bike lanes, the sidewalk on the Franklin Park side of the road is expected to be redone and widened. Lighting along the road will also be improved and the traffic signals will be better timed to compliment traffic flow.

One of the biggest physical changes to the roadway, aside from repaving it, will be the reduction of it from three lanes in each direction to two in each direction. Typically the third lane on the residential side of the road is used as a double parking lane, which is illegal and dangerous for drivers, pedestrians, and bicyclists.

Planners hope the adjustments will slow down drivers who often speed down the road and through the dense neighborhood that surrounds it.

“We expect the cars will go slower as we tighten the lanes,” added Mayrl.

The project, which first started in 2010 and held its first community meeting in 2012, is expected, pending weather and community input, to begin construction by mid-2014.
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http://www.boston.com/yourtown/news...alk_bike_lanes_on_seaver_street_thursday.html
 
RE: Tomorrow's storm... Heads up to anyone using Hubway in Cambridge:

Hello Hubway member,

Due to a forecast of inclement weather, we will temporarily close Hubway at 2:00PM on Saturday, December 14th, to protect the safety of our members and staff. No bikes can be rented after the temporary closure has begun, though any bikes in use at the time can be returned to any Hubway station with an available dock.
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This (forecasted-to-be-horrific) winter should be the perfect test run to see if Hubway can run year round.
 
if Fox25 forecast is to be believed, there will only be about 2 inches of snow before midnight, with the rest coming afterward. So the 2pm closure seems premature.
 
datadyne007 said:
This (forecasted-to-be-horrific) winter should be the perfect test run to see if Hubway can run year round.
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Because apparently experience from Chicago and Toronto, using the same exact system, doesnt count.
 
after the recent storms I think the city (or the snow removal company they contract out to) needs to do a much better job clearing snow from bike facilities (they never bothered to plow the cycletrack on western ave.), and the city should aggressively ticket all cars parked in bike lanes after a couple days grace period after a storm. It's $100 a ticket for parking in the bike lane - and a couple weeks ago, by my count on my morning commute, the city could have made tens of thousands of dollars.

bike lanes are travel lanes - not places for plows to dump snow or people to park cars.
 
Just saw this posted on the Boston Bike Party Site:

Happy New Year!

It’s summertime in Antarctica and the Boston Bike Party is enjoying it penguin style. So throw on that Hawaiian shirt, ray-bans, & grass skirt, and head waaaaaay down south with us. Come ride the Heatwave!

When: January 21, 2014, departing from Government Center at 8pm SHARP.
 
jass said:
Because apparently experience from Chicago and Toronto, using the same exact system, doesnt count.
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chicago's system hasn't seen a full winter yet, it just started in July.
 
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