Capital Bikeshare
Encyclopedia
Capital Bikeshare is a bicycle sharing system that serves Washington, D.C.
, and Arlington County, Virginia
. The stations and bicycles are owned by the participating local governments and operated in a public-private partnership
with Alta Bike Share, Inc. With more than 1,100 bicycles operating from 116 stations, the system is one of the largest bike sharing services in the United States.
In the year since the system opened in September 2010, Capital Bikeshare enrolled nearly 17,000 annual members, 1,800 monthly members, and sold over 94,000 daily and weekly passes. The city of Alexandria, Virginia
and Montgomery County, Maryland
approved plans to join the Capital Bikeshare network in 2011. The addition of two new jurisdictions and expansions within the District and Arlington will enlarge the network to a total of 278 stations and 2,700 bikes by the end of 2012.
, debuted in 2008 and consisted of 10 stations with 120 bicycles. The system was the first of its kind in North America. However, SmartBike DC never expanded beyond its initial pilot program, due in part to the expense and difficulty of installing new stations, which required the local utility company to bring electricity to each station. SmartBike DC officially ceased operations in January 2011.
The D.C. Department of Transportation
then joined with adjacent Arlington County, Virginia, to create a new service owned by the local governments but operated in a public-private partnership with Alta Bike Share, Inc. Capital Bikeshare launched in September 2010 with 400 bicycles at 49 rental stations. By February 2011, Capital Bikeshare had expanded to 100 stations in the District of Columbia and 14 stations in the Pentagon City, Potomac Yard
, and Crystal City neighborhoods in Arlington. Transportation agencies in each jurisdiction select the location of the rental stations, as well as the number of bike docks, depending on planners' estimates of local demand.
Planning and implementation costs for Capital Bikeshare totaled $5 million, with additional first-year operating costs of million for 100 stations. The District's share of planning, implementation and first-year operating costs was partially financed by a $6 million grant by the United States Department of Transportation
. Arlington County's operating cost share of the plan was $835,000 for the first year, funded by public contributions including a grant from the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation
as well as subsidies from Arlington County Transportation, Crystal City Business Improvement District, and the Potomac Yard
Transportation Management Association. In April 2011, Capital Bikeshare administrators said they expect earned revenue to cover 50% of the system's annual operating costs. The District of Columbia also plans to sell advertising on Capital Bikeshare stations with the goal of raising .
Capital Bikeshare has grown steadily, which has driven demand for more stations and bikes. Most of the system's users live in or near the city center; stations in the poorer areas in the eastern portion the city are comparatively underused. The National Park Service
originally prohibited Capital Bikeshare stations on the property it manages, including large areas such as the National Mall
. However, the agency later reversed itself and said that it would work to include new stations in future expansions. In September 2011, Capital Bikeshare announced it had reached 18,000 members and one million rides in its first year of operation, doubling initial expectations.
Arlington County also announced plans to add 30 stations in fall 2011, primarily along the densely populated corridor between the Rosslyn and Ballston neighborhoods. In September 2011, County officials said they would add 30 more stations in 2012. In October 2011, the neighboring city of Alexandria, Virginia
, approved plans to deploy 54 bicycles at six stations in the Old Town and Carlyle
neighborhoods in 2012, then add six more stations in 2013. The cost of the first year would be $400,000, including operating costs of $100,440.
Montgomery County, Maryland
, has similarly approved plans to install 20 stations and 200 bikes in the Rockville
and Shady Grove
areas near Washington Metro
stations and high-traffic destinations such as Montgomery College
and Rockville Town Center. The expansion will be paid for by a $1.288 million grant from the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board
with a $688,000 local match.
By September 2012, these additions and expansions will bring the network to 278 stations and 2,700 bikes in four jurisdictions. A local transportation official said that the system could be expanded further throughout the D.C. area and have as many as 5,000 bicycles within the next few years.
-based Bixi
. The red-colored aluminum unisex bicycles have three gears, an adjustable seat, and a front basket as well as a headlight and twin red taillights that are powered whenever the bicycle is in motion. Rental stations are fully automated and are powered by solar panels, allowing them to be located anywhere space is available. A wireless data link connects the docks and station kiosk to a central bike-tracking and billing database. Riders can use the Capital Bikeshare website and smartphone
applications to see where rental stations are located and how many bikes and empty docks they have.
Alta Bike Share vans redistribute bikes among stations and take bikes out of service for maintenance. Each bike dock has a repair button used to report a bike that is damaged or malfunctioning, which also takes the bike out of service. Riders are expected to notify Capital Bikeshare if a bike is unable to dock at a station and are responsible for the rented bike until it has been returned.
As of May 2011, it cost $41,500 to install a station with 6 docks and $49,300 each for larger stations with 14 docks. Each bicycle costs about $1,000, and the annual operating cost per bike is $1,860.
Any rider may take unlimited trips of 30 minutes or less, as measured from the time the bike is withdrawn from a dock to the time it is returned to another one, but are charged for each additional half-hour on a scale that rises from $1.50-8.00. This pricing structure is designed to encourage short hops from place to place, not longer leisure trips. If a station is full, riders may use the kiosk to get an additional 15 minutes of free time to return the bike to another station.
A replacement fee of $1,000 is charged to the credit card on file if a rented bike is not returned within 24 hours.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, and Arlington County, Virginia
Arlington County, Virginia
Arlington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The land that became Arlington was originally donated by Virginia to the United States government to form part of the new federal capital district. On February 27, 1801, the United States Congress organized the area as a subdivision of...
. The stations and bicycles are owned by the participating local governments and operated in a public-private partnership
Public-private partnership
Public–private partnership describes a government service or private business venture which is funded and operated through a partnership of government and one or more private sector companies...
with Alta Bike Share, Inc. With more than 1,100 bicycles operating from 116 stations, the system is one of the largest bike sharing services in the United States.
In the year since the system opened in September 2010, Capital Bikeshare enrolled nearly 17,000 annual members, 1,800 monthly members, and sold over 94,000 daily and weekly passes. The city of Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2009, the city had a total population of 139,966. Located along the Western bank of the Potomac River, Alexandria is approximately six miles south of downtown Washington, D.C.Like the rest of northern Virginia, as well as...
and Montgomery County, Maryland
Montgomery County, Maryland
Montgomery County is a county in the U.S. state of Maryland, situated just to the north of Washington, D.C., and southwest of the city of Baltimore. It is one of the most affluent counties in the United States, and has the highest percentage of residents over 25 years of age who hold post-graduate...
approved plans to join the Capital Bikeshare network in 2011. The addition of two new jurisdictions and expansions within the District and Arlington will enlarge the network to a total of 278 stations and 2,700 bikes by the end of 2012.
History
Washington's first bike sharing service, SmartBike DCSmartBike DC
SmartBike DC was a bicycle sharing system implemented in August 2008 with 120 bicycles and 10 automated rental locations in the central business district of Washington, D.C. The network was the first of its kind in North America, but was replaced by the much larger, publicly-funded Capital...
, debuted in 2008 and consisted of 10 stations with 120 bicycles. The system was the first of its kind in North America. However, SmartBike DC never expanded beyond its initial pilot program, due in part to the expense and difficulty of installing new stations, which required the local utility company to bring electricity to each station. SmartBike DC officially ceased operations in January 2011.
The D.C. Department of Transportation
District of Columbia Department of Transportation
The District of Columbia Department of Transportation is an agency of the government of the District of Columbia which manages and maintains publicly-owned transportation infrastructure in the District of Columbia...
then joined with adjacent Arlington County, Virginia, to create a new service owned by the local governments but operated in a public-private partnership with Alta Bike Share, Inc. Capital Bikeshare launched in September 2010 with 400 bicycles at 49 rental stations. By February 2011, Capital Bikeshare had expanded to 100 stations in the District of Columbia and 14 stations in the Pentagon City, Potomac Yard
Potomac Yard
Potomac Yard was one of the busiest rail yards on the Eastern Seaboard of the United States. Today, it refers to the neighborhood encompassing the same, which straddles southeastern Arlington County and northern Alexandria, Virginia, bounded by U.S. Route 1, the George Washington Memorial Parkway,...
, and Crystal City neighborhoods in Arlington. Transportation agencies in each jurisdiction select the location of the rental stations, as well as the number of bike docks, depending on planners' estimates of local demand.
Planning and implementation costs for Capital Bikeshare totaled $5 million, with additional first-year operating costs of million for 100 stations. The District's share of planning, implementation and first-year operating costs was partially financed by a $6 million grant by the United States Department of Transportation
United States Department of Transportation
The United States Department of Transportation is a federal Cabinet department of the United States government concerned with transportation. It was established by an act of Congress on October 15, 1966, and began operation on April 1, 1967...
. Arlington County's operating cost share of the plan was $835,000 for the first year, funded by public contributions including a grant from the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation
Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation
Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation is an agency of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States.According to its web site, the state agency's mission is "to improve the mobility of people and goods while expanding transportation choices in the Commonwealth."The three...
as well as subsidies from Arlington County Transportation, Crystal City Business Improvement District, and the Potomac Yard
Potomac Yard
Potomac Yard was one of the busiest rail yards on the Eastern Seaboard of the United States. Today, it refers to the neighborhood encompassing the same, which straddles southeastern Arlington County and northern Alexandria, Virginia, bounded by U.S. Route 1, the George Washington Memorial Parkway,...
Transportation Management Association. In April 2011, Capital Bikeshare administrators said they expect earned revenue to cover 50% of the system's annual operating costs. The District of Columbia also plans to sell advertising on Capital Bikeshare stations with the goal of raising .
Capital Bikeshare has grown steadily, which has driven demand for more stations and bikes. Most of the system's users live in or near the city center; stations in the poorer areas in the eastern portion the city are comparatively underused. The National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
originally prohibited Capital Bikeshare stations on the property it manages, including large areas such as the National Mall
National Mall
The National Mall is an open-area national park in downtown Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. The National Mall is a unit of the National Park Service , and is administered by the National Mall and Memorial Parks unit...
. However, the agency later reversed itself and said that it would work to include new stations in future expansions. In September 2011, Capital Bikeshare announced it had reached 18,000 members and one million rides in its first year of operation, doubling initial expectations.
Future expansions
The District Department of Transportation announced that it would install 34 new stations and expand capacity at 18 existing locations in fall 2011. In September 2011, on Capital Bikeshare's first anniversary, the District announced a further 50 new stations would be added in 2012.Arlington County also announced plans to add 30 stations in fall 2011, primarily along the densely populated corridor between the Rosslyn and Ballston neighborhoods. In September 2011, County officials said they would add 30 more stations in 2012. In October 2011, the neighboring city of Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2009, the city had a total population of 139,966. Located along the Western bank of the Potomac River, Alexandria is approximately six miles south of downtown Washington, D.C.Like the rest of northern Virginia, as well as...
, approved plans to deploy 54 bicycles at six stations in the Old Town and Carlyle
Carlyle House
Carlyle House is a historic mansion in Alexandria, Virginia, United States, built by Scottish merchant John Carlyle in 1751-53. It is situated in the city’s Old Town on North Fairfax Street between Cameron and King Streets....
neighborhoods in 2012, then add six more stations in 2013. The cost of the first year would be $400,000, including operating costs of $100,440.
Montgomery County, Maryland
Montgomery County, Maryland
Montgomery County is a county in the U.S. state of Maryland, situated just to the north of Washington, D.C., and southwest of the city of Baltimore. It is one of the most affluent counties in the United States, and has the highest percentage of residents over 25 years of age who hold post-graduate...
, has similarly approved plans to install 20 stations and 200 bikes in the Rockville
Rockville, Maryland
Rockville is the county seat of Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It is a major incorporated city in the central part of Montgomery County and forms part of the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. The 2010 U.S...
and Shady Grove
Shady Grove, Maryland
Shady Grove is an unincorporated area of Montgomery County, Maryland. It has a population of 5,000-7,000, between the cities of Rockville and Gaithersburg, mostly in zip codes 20850 and 20855, though the exact boundaries are not officially defined. Shady Grove is one of Montgomery County's upper...
areas near Washington Metro
Washington Metro
The Washington Metro, commonly called Metro, and unofficially Metrorail, is the rapid transit system in Washington, D.C., United States, and its surrounding suburbs. It is administered by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority , which also operates Metrobus service under the Metro name...
stations and high-traffic destinations such as Montgomery College
Montgomery College
Montgomery College is a public, open access community college located in Montgomery County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C. in the United States. The college has three campuses, the largest of which is in Rockville; the other campuses are in Takoma Park/Silver Spring and Germantown...
and Rockville Town Center. The expansion will be paid for by a $1.288 million grant from the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board
Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments
The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments is a regional organization of Washington area local governments. MWCOG comprises 21 local governments in the Washington Metropolitan Area, as well as area members of the Maryland and Virginia state legislatures, the U.S. Senate, and the U.S. House...
with a $688,000 local match.
By September 2012, these additions and expansions will bring the network to 278 stations and 2,700 bikes in four jurisdictions. A local transportation official said that the system could be expanded further throughout the D.C. area and have as many as 5,000 bicycles within the next few years.
Technology
Capital Bikeshare uses a system designed by MontrealMontreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
-based Bixi
BIXI
Bixi is a public bicycle sharing system developed by the Public Bike System Company , which itself was set up by the parking authority of Montréal to create a modular bicycle sharing system for Montréal....
. The red-colored aluminum unisex bicycles have three gears, an adjustable seat, and a front basket as well as a headlight and twin red taillights that are powered whenever the bicycle is in motion. Rental stations are fully automated and are powered by solar panels, allowing them to be located anywhere space is available. A wireless data link connects the docks and station kiosk to a central bike-tracking and billing database. Riders can use the Capital Bikeshare website and smartphone
Smartphone
A smartphone is a high-end mobile phone built on a mobile computing platform, with more advanced computing ability and connectivity than a contemporary feature phone. The first smartphones were devices that mainly combined the functions of a personal digital assistant and a mobile phone or camera...
applications to see where rental stations are located and how many bikes and empty docks they have.
Alta Bike Share vans redistribute bikes among stations and take bikes out of service for maintenance. Each bike dock has a repair button used to report a bike that is damaged or malfunctioning, which also takes the bike out of service. Riders are expected to notify Capital Bikeshare if a bike is unable to dock at a station and are responsible for the rented bike until it has been returned.
As of May 2011, it cost $41,500 to install a station with 6 docks and $49,300 each for larger stations with 14 docks. Each bicycle costs about $1,000, and the annual operating cost per bike is $1,860.
Pricing
Capital Bikeshare has four membership options. Casual riders may purchase a 24-hour membership ($7) or a 3-day membership ($15) at any bike station. After swiping a credit card at the station's kiosk, a rider gets a code to unlock a bike. Riders may also sign up online for a monthly ($25) or annual ($75) membership; these members are mailed an RFID key that can unlock bikes without the need to enter a code.Any rider may take unlimited trips of 30 minutes or less, as measured from the time the bike is withdrawn from a dock to the time it is returned to another one, but are charged for each additional half-hour on a scale that rises from $1.50-8.00. This pricing structure is designed to encourage short hops from place to place, not longer leisure trips. If a station is full, riders may use the kiosk to get an additional 15 minutes of free time to return the bike to another station.
A replacement fee of $1,000 is charged to the credit card on file if a rented bike is not returned within 24 hours.