BIXI, my latest addiction.

Artashes

Artashes

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A couple of nights ago, for the very first time, I took a BIXI for a ride. It was around 9 PM, it was hot and my girlfriend and I were bored. BIXIs have been around for a few months already, but somewhat "invisible" to us. We live downtown Montreal, no car, so we walk everywhere. In fact, we love to walk. We can easily go for an hour and a half walk when we feel like it.

But we were feeling bored and down, so we wanted to entertain ourselves a little. We decided to take a BIXI for a spin! All it took is a few seconds at the nearest station, swiped my credit card, got a couple of BIXIs and off we went - to St. Denis - the street we wouldn't normally walk to. What usually takes 45 minutes to walk to (who has the time after work), took 15 minutes to ride to, in a relaxing and defensive way, on one of many bicycle paths built and expanded over the last couple of years, in preparation for the new bike program.

To put it in one word - it was simply awesome! Neither my girlfriend or me wanted to get off when we got to the famous "cafe" street way sooner than expected. But we had to. We parked them at the nearest station and went off to eat dessert at Juliette et Chocolat, one of locals' favorite cafes. The night continued with us cycling to the Old Montreal area of town for international festival of fireworks. We took a break and then took new pair of BIXIs on a stroll through a Chinatown.

All trips were, well, free of charge. Why? Because all trips on BIXIs of 30 minutes or less are free, with just $1.50 for extra 30 mins, if you are really going far. For non-members (occasional users), a small $5 fee apply for a 24 hour access. But if you are a member ($78 for a 1 year subscription), then you don't have to worry about it.

Not only a fantastic idea, BIXI is a modern and beautiful way to travel in the city. Helps save on the emissions, stay healthy and not worry about your bike being stolen (happened to me once before). And with nearly 600 km of bike paths built in Montreal, you can get across town in just 30-45 minutes.

BIXI, inspired by Velib, a similar bicycle public transit in the city of Paris, has won numerous awards, and while it is still expanding in Montreal (currently around 300 stations and 3000 Bixis), other cities are placing orders. Apart from few other cities in Canada, a Montreal-born BIXI is coming soon to Boston, USA and London, UK.

In the meantime, we are now totally addicted to BIXI. It presents new opportunities for us to travel further in our own city and enjoy new hidden spots without worrying about parking, gas or traffic. We signed up for a 1 month subscription for now, but we are planning on going for the annual membership next year.
 
What an interesting concept! I don't think I'd see this working too well in the majority of the US as it seems that most other countries actually appreciate things like this. The US (how do I say this so I don't get flamed) seem to abuse public transport and deface or vandalize property on a whim. I think that for SOME parts of the country this could be a nice change. Boston (as planned) would be interesting, and even Seattle or San Francisco could be interesting, but I think places like Los Angeles or Chicago or even Miami, could see more LOSS than Profit.

I hope it works - It looks like Paris has done really well with it, and the concept is wonderful, I just have little fate in mankind to actually appreciate it and not destroy what is a novel and brave idea.
 
BIXIs are great for compact cities, such as Montreal is. We have about 1.6 million people living on the island of Montreal, and with soon 400 stations and 5000 bikes, this will connect the most busiest town districts and reduce traffic. Well, at least in the summer (BIXIs close down for harsh winter months).

I see them work well in a city like New York (Manhattan), but then the city has to invest a lot in the infrastructure (bike paths to keep cyclists safe) and in an expensive city like New York, it can get too pricey of an idea.

I love the concept and its proving too successful in Montreal. In fact, so successful they are working hard to accomplish a two-year plan in one summer.

I do agree that vandalism is a serious issue, and Montreal is facing it as well, but the city is testing some new prototypes to help minimize the effect. Here is actually a better brief summary of BIXI: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BIXI

What's also great is that all stations are completely autonomous and are powered by solar energy, so the impact on the environment is almost non-existent!
 
Wow. Sounds great!! Would never work in inner city St. Louis. You take your life in your hands riding a bike anywhere other than a bike trail here. I do ride the Katy Trail from St. Charles up through the farmlands to the vinevards.
 
It's a shame that their is a small minority out there who care so little about others and about public property.

A project like this would be beneficial to so many people yet in many cities it will never get off the ground because of vandalism.

"Less than two months after its introduction, the Bixi system has already encountered significant problems with damage and vandalism. The La Presse newspaper reported on July 5, 2009 that one in five bikes have been damaged and 15% of bike racks are defective. Stationnement de Montréal communications director Michel Philibert stated the organization plans to reinforce racks and is testing prototype designs."
 
That's a shame to read! I think it's a great idea, I'd love to see it in my city here, but it's like the old saying goes - One bad apple ruins the whole bunch.

I used to ride my bike in California from Fullerton to Huntington beach (about 20 miles or so) - ALL bike path direct to the beach. It was great not to have to worry about cars etc. But so few places have such systems in place for bikes.

Enjoy it while you can Artashes - who knows how long it may last!
 
I sure hope its here to stay, Conor. Montrealers are huge on cycling. I think its the French influence. The city has been heavily investing in bike paths and plan to reduce the city speed limit from 50km/hr to just 40km/hr (that's 25 miles/hour).

I bike in the summer time as much as I can. Usually, around 15-20 km per trip. But I did go on a competition once on my mountain bike - 110 km. It was outside of town. My friend and I were the only idiots on mountain bikes. It took about 5 hours, but we did finish it. :)

@ Michael, as with any new program, there will be glitches on the way. Its naive to assume it will be perfect on launch, yet they still hurry with further expansion. I am sure they will find a way, but keep in mind we are still in BETA so to speak. A lot of people still complain there were not enough bikes, and they also collect data on places of most activity, usage - so they will be shaping the program as it goes along. The beauty is that the stations are totally mobile - so they are easy to move. For example, depending on public events, they would install extra stations around the event location (Jazz festival, the Rogers Cup tennis tournament, etc).
 
The stations still depend on a wifi connection don't they Art?

I'm not so naive to think that there wouldn't be glitches and vandalism, I'm just disappointed that there is.

Ottawa has great bike trails and has had for years. I could see this working exceptionally well there as well as in Montreal.

I'm wondering if it would be feasable in Charlottetown. We don't have bike trails but the streets are relatively easy to navigate by bike.
 
Oh no argument there. I think vandalism should carry serious consequences and major penalties (financial or of liberties level). I hate it that some people who usually create nothing of their own have no respect for anything or anyone else's stuff.

To be honest, I don't know how stations work. All I know is that they are powered by solar energy. Similar to a car parking pay station, there has got to be some mechanism behind them to transmit data.
 
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