Officials celebrate bike- share program
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N. Y. » The Capital Region’s bikesharing program is being declared a success by officials, with high participation levels in its first- ever season.
During the first two months of operation, CDPHP Cycle! has been used by 2,028 members for 7,615 trips in Albany, Schenectady, Troy, and Saratoga Springs.
The original goal for all of 2017 was to enroll 2,000 members, and that mark was reached before the season’s midway point — with two months remaining.
The milestone was celebrated at an event on Thursday in Congress Park in Saratoga Springs, where program leaders took a ceremonial bike ride through the park, encouraging residents to take advantage of the warm weather and the eight weeks remaining in the cycling season.
In Albany, where the bikes are primarily being used to commute, there has been a total of 5,274 rides.
In Saratoga Springs, users are renting the bicycles mainly for recreational purposes, totaling at 1,121 rides.
In Troy there has been 764 rides, and 456 in Schenectady.
Earlier this month, as college students returned to campus, ridership saw an additional spike.
Of the 7,615 rides since the July 27 launch, a total of 793,292 calories were burned and there was a carbon reduction of 17,488.49 pounds.
Overall, the average trip duration has been 33 minutes, with an average distance of about 2.8 miles.
The longest distance traveled on one of the bikes so far was 24 miles.
“Simply put, CDPHP Cycle! has been a hit since Day One,” said CDTA board chairman David Stackrow, in a press release. “We’ve never seen so much enthusiasm for a new service, and the numbers prove that point. We will continue to closely monitor usage and find ways to make the program even more useful and convenient.”
Local rider and downtown Saratoga Springs resident Lizzie Hunter is a monthly member of the CDPHP Cycle! program. She first started riding over the summer with friends as a fun activity.
“It was just a fun way to see the city when it was nice out in the summer. It gave us something to do other than just what everybody always does, like walk around on Broadway,” she said. “We loved it. We saw so many different neighborhoods. I found all of these things I’d never seen.”
Then, Hunter and her peers started sometimes using the bikes as their full means of transportation. One day in particular they rode from downtown Saratoga Springs to the Victoria Pool in Spa State Park, then to Saratoga Race Course for a few horseraces, and then back home downtown for the evening.
Now, Hunter said she typically uses the bike share program a couple times a week.
“It’s really fun,” Hunter said. “It gives us something to do.”
When riding the bikes, Hunter often received inquiries about the program, from others who are interested in trying it. Especially in the beginning, “I got a lot of excitement from everyone every time we rode,” she said.
At Thursday’s event, Mayor Joanne Yepsen spoke of her vision make the Saratoga Springs a more multi- mobile city, because of its wellness and environmental benefits, along with serving as an additional offering for residents and tourists. Looking ahead, she said, “It is very essential that we now create more infrastructure in our city to better accommodate riders, walkers — and that’s our vision as well, is to become a much more walkable, bikeable safe city, so people don’t need cars, or to worry about a parking spot.”
Riders may purchase a membership or load a pay-as-you- go account by registering online or downloading the CDPHP Cycle! mobile app. The cost to cycle is just $ 0.08 per minute with an hourly pass.
The CDPHP Cycle! season is expected to end on Nov. 30, and resume on April 1, 2018, with 160 additional bikes in circulation and even more bike stations.
“We’re excited that CDPHP Cycle! has had such a positive impact on our community in its first two months,” said CDPHP executive vice president and chief marketing officer Brian O’Grady, in the release. “While we look forward to expanding the program in 2018, residents still have two months to take advantage of this healthy and innovative mode of transportation!”
More information about CDPHP Cycle!, including additional rental fees and rack locations is available online at www.cdphpcycle.com.