Earth Day Idea: Bike Sharing

A few days ago I stumbled upon an article talking about a bike sharing program in Denver. Starting today, Denver residents will be able to rent a bike Zipcar-syle for $5 a day, $20 a week, $30 a month, or $65 a year. This is the part that's really cool... if a bicyclist can pick up and return a bike within 30min, it's free. Over 400 bikes will be available across multiple stations throughout, giving Denver the largest bike-share program in the US. There's a little Silicon Valley in there too... bikers each get a personal account page which tracks how many miles you've traveled, carbon offset, calories burned, money saved, etc.

Why am I telling you all this about Denver? I think this is simply a phenomenal concept. I wish we thought of it first! We have an amazing bicycling community here and you need to look no further than San Jose Bike Party as a shining example of this. Biking is a great way to reduce traffic and pollution, live healthier, and build a unique culture. They say imitation is the greatest form of flattery, so I say we compliment Denver by shamelessly taking their concept and implementing it here as well. Perhaps we can even do a little to make it our own (electric-assisted hybrid bikes like the ones we may see at the San Pedro Square Market)?

As ground zero for green-tech innovation, we should be on top of this stuff. I would love to one day be able to walk around downtown and hop on a bike for a quick ride with friends, or spontaneously join a bike party. With billions going to BART and HSR, hopefully the city can one day also spare a million or two on a high-impact bike sharing program like our friends in Denver.