New York City is the latest market to delay the launch of its Bixi system.
Chattanooga was slated to launch May 1
First Chattanooga, now New York City.
The Big Apple says it will not launch its Bixi bike-sharing system in July as originally announced. The news comes as Chattanooga, Tenn., continues to work out glitches in its Bixi system, which was supposed to launch May 1.
The Public Bike System Co., a company controlled and financially supported by the city of Montreal, sold the Bixi systems to Chattanooga and New York City.
Chattanooga has blamed its continuing problems on a glitch in Bixi’s new software.
In New York, officials did not explain the delay, saying only the launch of its 10,000-bike Citi Bike system has been moved to August.
“With any big system there’s always things that you’ve got to make sure work before you turn it on,” New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Friday. “We’re not going to turn it on until it’s ready.”
New York is a prestigious customer, and a long delay there would be a major em- barrassment for Bixi that could affect sales elsewhere.
Contacted by The Gazette Tuesday, Bixi spokesperson Michel Philibert said he could not comment on the delay in New York.
Asked if New York’s delay is related to the software problem, Philibert said: “What I can tell you is we are in line with our delivery schedule – we are delivering the bikes and stations,” he said. “We are respecting our contract with Alta Bike Share.”
Alta Bike Share is Bixi’s Oregon-based U.S. partner.
For U.S. customers, the PBSC provides the bikes and docking stations, while Alta installs and operates the systems. Alta runs Bixi-based bike-sharing systems in Boston and Washington, and is setting them up in Chattanooga and New York.
Alta Bike Share did not respond to a request for comment from The Gazette.
The software causing problems in Chattanooga is used for payments and the management and operation of bike-sharing networks.
Bixi just developed the software to replace software created by 8D Technologies, a Montreal company. Until recently, 8D provided the software for all Bixi stations.
But Bixi is now in a legal dispute with the company, which is suing Bixi for $26million. bixi has launched a $2.5-million counter-suit.
8D’s software is still used in Montreal’s Bixi stations and all other previously sold Bixi systems around the world.
The new software is being used in Chattanooga and is to be used in New York and any other cities that buy Bixi.
Philibert said software testing on Chattanooga’s 300-bike system “has now been completed and it will be launching in the coming days or weeks.”
Bike sharing has been getting a rough ride in Chattanooga and New York lately.
In an editorial Tuesday, the Chattanooga Times Free Press referred to that city’s Bixi system as a “bicycle boondoggle” fuelled by $2 million in federal funding.
“Could someone pinpoint the precise moment when it became the responsibility of non-bicycle-riding Americans to foot the bill for others to ride?” the editorial said.
In New York, city comptroller John Liu recently criticized Citi Bike. Among other things, he wants helmets to be mandatory in New York.
“In the rush to place 10,000 bicycles on our streets, city hall may have pedalled past safety measures, a move that risks significantly exacerbating the number of injuries and fatalities of both bikers and pedestrians, especially those most vulnerable like young children and seniors,” Liu said in June.
It’s still unclear when Bixi will publish its 2011 financial statements, which will offer the first details of Bixi’s financial performance last year. They were supposed to be made public in April, but Bixi says it must rework them in preparation for a possible sale of its international arm.
On Tuesday, Philibert said the statements will soon be sent to the city’s auditor. He could not say when they will be made public.
Last year, in a controversial move, Montreal bailed out Bixi, providing $71 million in loan guarantees and credit lines. Bixi still owes the city about $34 million of $37 million it borrowed. Bixi says it is repaying the loan at a rate of $220,000 per month.
Montreal executive committee chair Michael Applebaum recently told The Gazette the city is considering several options for Bixi’s international operations.
“Does Montreal keep Bixi? Divide Bixi between local and international? Does Bixi get sold to private (local) investors and Montreal keeps a percentage? These are all scenarios that are being looked at,” Applebaum said last month.