Citi Bike: the First Two Years

Citi Bike: The First Two Years Sarah M. Kaufman, Lily Gordon-Koven, Nolan Levenson and Mitchell L. Moss June 2015 CITI BIKE The First Two Years Introduction 5 Citi Bike in Context 6 History of Bicycling in New York City 6 Urban Change 7 Global Context 7 Planning Citi Bike 7 Citi Bike Launch 8 Citi Bike’s Success 8 Comparative Connection to Transit 11 Activity Hubs 12 Looking Forward 13 Diversity 13 Rebalancing & Repair 16 Future Plans 17 Appendix A: Research Methodology and Framework 18 Endnotes 19 Cover Image: Sean Davis, Flickr/seandavis ABOUT THE RUDIN CENTER FOR TRANSPORTATION The Rudin Center for Transportation Policy and Management at NYU’s Wagner school explores challenges in transportation and infrastructure. The Center draws upon faculty and graduate students to conduct research on cities and mobility, information technology in transportation and access to mass transit. We have built a Mobility Factbook exploring the 27 modes of transportation in New York City, and issue reports on social media in transit, the future of taxis and the Citi Bike system. The Rudin Center was named in recognition of a gift from Lewis Rudin and receives support from leading firms in transportation, finance, and communications. The director of the Center is Mitchell L. Moss, Henry Hart Rice Professor of Urban Policy and Planning. Rudin Center for Transportation Robert F. Wagner School of Public Service, New York University 295 Lafayette Street, Second Floor, New York, NY 10012 www.NYURudinCenter.com Citi Bike: The First Two Years !3 ABSTRACT New York City launched Citi Bike, the largest bike share program in the United States, in May 2013. This study examines the first two years of Citi Bike and its role in New York City mobility. Citi Bike’s station connection to public transportation hubs and station density are major factors in the system’s high ridership and use. Seventy-four percent of Citi Bike stations are within a five-minute walk of a subway station entrance, providing a “last mile” solution for transit commuters. The system’s greatest challenges are expanding and diversifying its customer base while also rebalancing the number of bicycles available at high-demand stations. Citi Bike has become an integral part of New York’s transportation culture, even though it serves a limited geographic area. This report addresses those challenges and recommends strategies for the future. Acknowledgements Thanks to Justin Tyndall and Sean Lewin of the NYU Rudin Center; Justin Ginsburgh with Motivate; and Stephanie Levinsky with the Trust for Governors Island and formerly of NYC Department of Transportation. NYU Rudin Center for Transportation INTRODUCTION Citi Bike: The First Two Years Public bike sharing allows users to ride commercial retail hubs by bicycle for daily rented bicycles from one bike station to commuters and casual users. Citi Bike is another. The number of bike share the largest bike share program in the programs in the United States has United States, and in its first two years has increased in the last four years: by late become a key element in the city’s 2014, more than 20 bike share programs transportation network, providing a last- were operating in cities across the U.S. mile solution. This report explores how New York City’s bike share program, Citi Bike, relates to the By early February 2015, Citi Bike riders existing travel modes, and the had taken more than 13.6 million trips, and characteristics of its users. more than 120,000 riders spent $95 to become annual members.1 Unlike other Urban bike share systems in Washington, American bike share programs, Citi Bike DC, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, operates at a dense, concentrated core that Denver, Miami, and New York City intertwines with transit. When mass provide access to downtown business transit is facing serious constraints, Citi districts, residential neighborhoods, and Bike complements and supplements existing transit in New York City. Image: Instagram/citibike NYU Rudin Center for Transportation !5 Citi Bike: The First Two Years CITI BIKE IN CONTEXT History of Bicycling in New York City The focus on bicycle safety from police and Cycling in New York City is not a new lawmakers continues to grow, particularly phenomenon: before the advent of the with Mayor Bill De Blasio’s Vision Zero automobile, bicycles were a common mode program, which aims to end traffic fatalities of transportation. During the early 1900’s, in New York City.10 the bicycle empowered the women’s rights movement by enabling women to travel Attention from other industries surges independently, wear pants instead of as more New Yorkers choose to bicycle. For petticoats, and engage in public life.2 example, luxury hotels are lending bicycles Delivery persons and messengers have been to guests.11 Meanwhile, application using bicycles to quickly transverse the developers are using data from the DOT to City’s streets for decades.3 build smartphone apps and websites that make biking in New York City easier, Mayor Edward Koch supported helping riders to find bike stations, routes bicycling infrastructure in New York City and shops. In addition to traditional tourism during the 1970’s and witnessed peaks in bicycle rental companies, the company bicycling during the gas crisis of the late Spinlister introduced a peer-to-peer rental 1970’s and the 1980 transit strike.4 He model for short-term bicycling rentals.12 implemented the first protected bike lanes in Midtown in 1980, but the city removed the Bicycle commuting in New York City lanes following political and media pressure doubled between 2007 and 2011. Likewise, the same year.5 Expansion of the City’s screenline counts of riders at bridge limited bicycle facilities remained stagnant crossings nearly tripled from 12,756 in 2000 for nearly two decades. to 36,434 in 2013.13 The bike lane expansion has received criticism from some local During the past decade, however, the residents and media; however, a 2012 New bicycle network has flourished. Led by York Times poll showed that 66% of New Mayor Michael M. Bloomberg, New York Yorkers think bike lanes are a good idea.14 City added more than 350 miles of bike The Prospect Park West in Brooklyn bicycle facilities, contributing to more than 700 miles lane created large public debate and a of bike facilities from 2007 to 2013.6 Bicycling lawsuit, despite evidence showing improved reached one percent modeshare7 in New traffic safety.15 Massive improvements in the York City in 2013 and Mayor Bill de Blasio city’s bicycle networks, coupled with announced a goal to reach six percent mode popular support, created a political and share by 2020.8 In September 2014, Bicycling infrastructure foundation that made Citi Magazine named New York City the Bike possible. country’s best bicycling city.9 NYU Rudin Center for Transportation !6 Citi Bike: The First Two Years Urban Change Planning Citi Bike Bike share came to New York City during the The New York City Department of rise of the “sharing economy,” and an City Planning conducted a bike share economic recovery after the 2008 recession. feasibility study in 2009.20 The City issued a In 2013, the year Citi Bike launched, New request for proposals in November 2010 and York City’s population passed 8.4 million ultimately selected NYC Bike Share, a newly residents for the first time.16 More than two formed subsidiary of Alta Bicycle Share,21 in dozen car sharing companies in the United September 2011. Funding was provided by States offer use of vehicles on a temporary, Citigroup and underwritten by Goldman as-needed basis. These companies, plus Sachs Urban Investment Group. sharing-economy successes like Uber and Lyft, remove the long-term costs of owning DOT staff conducted 159 multilingual and maintaining a vehicle, which can be outreach meetings and more than 200 prohibitive for urbanites who may benefit additional stakeholder meetings to engage from use of a vehicle occasionally.17 residents and community groups in the Meanwhile, companies like AirBnb facilitate planning process. Using a new online tool peer-to-peer exchanges of space and goods, called “Shareabouts,” the city solicited more and co-working spaces and food co-ops dot than 10,000 station location suggestions and the New York City landscape.18 60,000 comments from the public. DOT staff then identified feasible station locations from Global Context public input to create the network of more Compared to cities in Latin America, Asia, than 300 initial stations.22 and Europe, New York and other American cities were relatively slow to implement bike sharing. Early forms of bike share began in Dutch and Danish cities in the 1960’s and 1990’s, and Paris pioneered the first public computerized bike share program in 1998. By 2013, nearly 400 bike share programs were established or growing in cities across Europe and Latin America. The largest known bike share program is in the Chinese city of Wuhan, which has approximately 90,000 bicycles for a population of 9 million residents. Seventy-nine Chinese cities hosted bike share programs when Citi Bike launched in 2013.19 Bike share implementation in New York City marks an important moment in the city’s Shareabouts allowed New Yorkers to vote on Citi Bike transportation history and reflects growing station locations. trends in modal integration and innovation. NYU Rudin Center for Transportation !7 Citi Bike: The First Two Years Citi Bike Launch Geographically, the system covers the city’s After several delays, including one related to major commercial business districts and equipment damage caused by Superstorm several residential areas, allowing riders to Sandy, Citi Bike launched in May 2013 with travel short distances from work to home or 330 stations and 5,000 bikes in the lower half between meetings.

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