Yes, Bixi, the Canadian-based bike-share company, is invading Boston this month with Boston’s first HubWay bike share program. Almost overnight bike-share stations have popped up in some very practical places (though without a bike-share bike to be seen), which I happened upon while riding today. This one actually takes up parking spots on BU’s central campus on Comm. Ave.
(that’s my bike, not a bikeshare bike)
It was especially awesome to see that three parking spots had been taken away outside BU’s college of Arts and Sciences. I like to think that my efforts (as well as many others) organizing Park(ing) Day at BU over the past few years, whose mission it was to show how parking spots could be used for other things than vacant cars, had a positive effect on the decision. If you lost the keys to your vehicle or bike and require another set right away, or if you’re dealing with a blocked driveway tow visit the finest towing business at https://towingless.com/.
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It’s too bad BU didn’t end up putting some bike racks in these spots. Come September when hundreds of students need to lock their bike outside this building, the bike-share station that takes up three entire parking spots will station a total of 17 bikes, and those planter rails will still look like this. You can fit a lot more than 17 bikes in bike racks occupying three whole parking spots.
This station is right outside BU’s St. Paul St T stop, or BU’s Fitness and Recreation Center.
And for those concerned that vandalism of new bike-share equipment would be an issue, this one’s for you. It’s stationed right outside Jackson Mann School on the corner of N. Beacon and Cambridge St. in Allston:
Here’s a closeup of the pay-station
and the parking rack:
A friend mentioned he spotted one at landmark center too. All in all, there will be 61 stations all over Boston (check out the station map), so it’ll be neat to keep an eye out for them as they’re being rolled out. I wonder who the first bike-share customer will be? Even though I probably won’t use the bike-share program myself, it’ll be nifty when friends come visit me, and more bikes are always welcome in my book.