City-wide bike sharing program launched
A new bicycle sharing service offering bikes at three stations in the city was unveiled Wednesday morning at Fleming College.
The campus is the second in Canada to launch the 24/7 service – Windsor Career College was first – in co-operation with Zagster, which allows members to reserve and ride shared bicycles through a free smartphone application.
Bicycles are located at three stations: the main doors at the Kawartha Trades and Technology Building at Fleming’s Sutherland Campus, the Venure North building at George and King streets and outside Green UP on Aylmer St.
Riders join the program by signing up for $25 annual memberships. Rides for members – who must be 18 or older – are free for the first two hours, then $2 per hour after that. The service is free for Fleming College students.
The award-winning bikes – 15 to start – are designed with rider safety in mind and include automatic lights, bells and reflectors, officials stated.
The project was funded largely via student fees, with contributions from the city and Fleming student administrative council, SAC general manager Christopher Smith told those gathered under the canopy at the entrance to the technology building.
The service further complements efforts to make student transportation accessible and affordable, he said, notingother efforts include an increase in transit schedules and routes to studentsthrough the implementation of a universal transit pass and launch of a carpooling program.
SAC president Joel Willett demonstrated exactly how riders will use the service before joining city councillors and college president Tony Tilley on an improptu test ride of the bicycles as light rain continued to fall at the campus.
Each bicycle has a unique number which riders enter into the app to obtain and to open a lockbox on the back of the bike, allowing it to be removed from the station. After the bicycle is returned to a station, the rental ends and the becomes available for someone else.
The planned introduction of Bluetooth technology this July is expected to further expedite the unlocking process, Willett noted. Those without a smartphone can still use the service – they just have to text the number provided at the station.
All repairs on the bikes will be done locally, he added.
Coun. Don Vassiliadis, transportation chairman for the city, praised the service for how easy it makes accessing a bicycle.
“I think it’s a great investment for Peterborough,” he said.
Coun. Dan McWilliams, second deputy mayor, noted that the service will be a great way for students to access bicycle lanes downtown.
“This is a tremendous boon for those lanes,” he said.
Tilley pointed out how the service will help reduce greenhouse gases. “We are moving towards that emphasis on a healthier lifestyle.”
NOTES: Bicycles can be found via the Zagster Mobile App or online at zagster.com/PtboBikeShare .... The Zagster website is at www.zagster.com.