Bike Share Toronto

Last updated
Bike Share Toronto
Bike Share Toronto logo.png
BikeShareToronto Temperance St at Cloud Gardens.JPG
Station on Temperance St. at Cloud Gardens
Overview
Owner Toronto Parking Authority
Locale Toronto, Canada
Transit type Bicycle-sharing system
Number of stations850+
Annual ridership7 million (2024)
Website bikesharetoronto.com
Operation
Began operationMay 3, 2011 (as Bixi Toronto)
Operator(s)Shift Transit
Number of vehicles9,000+ bikes
All Bike Share trips in Toronto in 2017 BikeshareTrips1920x1080.png
All Bike Share trips in Toronto in 2017

Bike Share Toronto is a bicycle-sharing system in Toronto, Ontario, operated by the Toronto Parking Authority (TPA). The system consists of over 9,000 bicycles and over 700 stations, [1] and covers over 200 square kilometres (80 square miles) in 21 of the 25 wards of the city, with plans to expand to the entire city by 2025. [2]

Contents

The system was launched in 2011 by PBSC Urban Solutions under the BIXI brand and was taken over by the City of Toronto through the Toronto Parking Authority in 2014. The system is currently sponsored by Tangerine Bank. Since 2016, the system has been gradually expanded, with ridership increasing to a high of 7 million rides in 2024.

History

Bike Share Toronto launched in 2011 as BIXI Toronto, [3] with 80 stations centred around the downtown core of Toronto and 1,000 bicycles. [3] The system was operated by PBSC.

In 2013, PBSC announced that it was unable to pay back $3.9 million of a $4.5 million loan from the City of Toronto and filed for bankruptcy. [4] The City decided to cover the loan by diverting money from an automated public-toilets program. The City then took control of the bike-share program, [5] and April 1, 2014, the Toronto Parking Authority (TPA) took control of the system, and renamed it to Bike Share Toronto. The new operator of the system was Alta Bicycle Share (now Motivate). [6]

A planned expansion of 22 stations for the 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games was abandoned. The original stations operated on a hybrid platform; software was supplied by 8D and hardware came from PBSC. Later, each company developed its own full system of hardware and software, no longer supporting integration of components with other vendors. As a result, all existing stations would have to be replaced or retrofitted. [7]

System expansion

The first expansion launched in June 2016, with $4.9 million in funding provided by Metrolinx [8] and $1.1 million in Section 37 funds. [9] [10] The expansion added 120 stations and 1,000 bikes, for a total of 2,000 bicycles and 200 stations. The TPA chose PBSC as the supplier of the new bicycles and stations. As part of the agreement, PBSC would also retrofit the existing stations to be compatible with the new stations. [11]

On April 1, 2017, the TPA transitioned the day-to-day operation of Bike Share Toronto to Shift Transit, a PBSC partner company, while maintaining ownership of the system. [12] [13]

A further expansion of the system took place in August 2017, with the system expanding to 270 stations, 2,750 bikes and 4,700 docks, with $4 million in expansion funding from the Government of Canada and the City of Toronto. [14] The August 2018 expansion expanded the station to 360 stations, 3,750 bikes, and 6,200 docks. [15] By the end of 2019, 105 new stations and 1,250 more bikes had been added to the system in 2019, with a corresponding increase in ridership to over 2.4 million. [16]

In June 2020, it was announced that the system would expand substantially, with 1,850 new bicycles and 160 stations outside the downtown core, such as in North York and Scarborough. The size of the system would increase to over 200 square kilometres (80 square miles), with docking stations in 20 of the 25 wards. [17] [18] This expansion would also add 300 e-bikes to the system, allowing easier journeys in hilly parts of the city and speeding up long-distance journeys. [19]

In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and consequential stay-at-home orders, ridership grew by 20%, with records being set for both the busiest day and the busiest weekend on the system. [20] [21] The number of people with annual memberships increased to 465,000 from 2019 to 2020, around double the previous figure. [22]

Visualization of every Bike Share trip in Toronto in June 2024 Bike-share-trip-map-june2024-3600x2300.png
Visualization of every Bike Share trip in Toronto in June 2024

In 2021, ridership again grew by 20% to 3.5 million, [24] with the TPA calling the growth "tremendous". [22] On May 16, 2021, 27,000 riders were taken, setting a new one day ridership record. [25] TPA also noted a large increase in the number of riders following the installation of bike lanes on Bloor Street. [25] Toronto Bike Share began piloting a 45-minute membership, as well as developing a growth plan for future system expansion. [26]

In 2022, TPA announced that work on a 4-year growth plan had begun, with objectives such as increasing the number of stations to 1,000, the number of bikes to 10,000 (including 2500 e-bikes), expanding the spread of the system across all 25 wards of Toronto, and improving first and last mile connections and increase equitable access to the system. [25] Initial expansion in 2022 included 13 new stations as well as 225 new e-bikes & 100 regular bikes. [27] Overall, ridership grew by 31% in 2022, to 4.6 million. [28]

In 2023, 122 new stations were added, and ridership grew by 24% to 5.7 million. [29]

In 2024, 70 solar stations were added, along with 335 e-docks, for a total of 862 stations. [30]

Ridership

Bike Share Toronto cumulative annual trips from 2020-2024 Bike Share Toronto Cumulative Station Trips (December 2024).png
Bike Share Toronto cumulative annual trips from 2020-2024

Ridership is measured in the number of trips taken. A trip is counted whenever a bicycle is undocked and re-docked. Longer commutes may be counted as multiple trips, in part due to memberships encouraging shorter individual trips.

YearTrips TakenSource
20247,000,000 [31]
20235,700,000 [29]
20224,600,000 [28]
20213,575,000 [24]
20202,900,000 [21]
20192,400,384 [16]
20181,975,384 [20]
20171,510,802 [20]
2016834,235 [20]
2015667,000 [32]

Payment and Pricing

Payment Kiosk 2023 Bikeshare Toronto Kiosk 2023.jpg
Payment Kiosk 2023

Payment can done via a payment kiosk installed at each station, by key card at each dock, through their mobile app, or through their mobile website.

Riders who have no membership or pass must pay a $1 unlock fee. After which, they will be charged a fee based on duration of use. The fees are $0.12/min for a classic bicycle and $0.20/min for an e-bike. A 24-hour pass may also be purchased for $15, which allows for unlimited 90 minute rides on classic bikes.

Annual memberships are also available. There are two tiers, the Annual 30 which allows for unlimited 30 minute trips at $105/year, and the Annual 45 which allows for unlimited 45 minute trips at $120/year. Both tiers only provide unlimited trips on classic bicycles, but halves the rates of e-bikes to $0.10/min.

Exceeding the duration limit will incur overage fees. These fees are priced at the normal rates the riders pay for classic and e-bike usage. [33] It is recommended that riders dock and undock another bike often to reset this duration.

Reduced Fare Pass Program

Subsidized Toronto Community Housing tenants are eligible for the Annual 30 plan for a reduced price of $5, while market rate tenants are eligible for a 20% discount off annual membership rates. Ontario Disability Support Program recipients may qualify for annual memberships, where the e-bike per-minute fee is reduced to 0. [34]

Corporate and Student Discounts

Employees of registered companies or students and faculty members from registered schools can receive a 20% discount to their membership rates. [35]

Bikes

The bicycles are utility bicycles; they have a step-through frame with an upright seating position. They are equipped with internal hub gears, drum brakes, fenders, chain guard, generator lights, and a front rack. The conventional bikes are PBSC's "Iconic" model. The e-bikes which have been ordered for the e-bike pilot project are PBSC's "E-Fit" model. All the bikes have been configured with three-speed hubs. [36] The e-bike rollout started in 2020, with 300 pedal-assist electronic bikes. [17] By 2024, there were 1600 e-bikes in the system. [37]

Mobile apps

A mobile app can be used to rent bikes, instead of using the payment kiosk at stations. [38] Until 2024, the officially-recommended mobile app was the "PBSC" app (formerly named "CycleFinder"). A competing app, called Transit, also works. In 2024, Bike Share Toronto announced a new official app, simply titled "Bike Share Toronto," developed by Lyft Inc. [39]

Sponsorship and Promotions

TD logos on bike racks BikeShareTorontoTD.jpg
TD logos on bike racks

Between late 2014 and 2016, TD Canada Trust sponsored Toronto Bike Share, covering "all operating costs" [40] at a cost of $750,000 a year. This sponsorship was not renewed. [41] In 2020, the TPA signed a 3-year deal with Bell Media (Astral) for advertising rights at stations. [26] The TPA also stated that they were investigating the potential of a systemwide corporate sponsor, similar to other systems like Santander Cycles in London. [26]

In May 2023, it was announced that Tangerine Bank had signed a five year sponsorship agreement with Bike Share Toronto. This would help fund initiatives included in a 4-year growth plan, with Tangerine Bank customers receiving rewards for using the system. [42]

Free Ride Wednesdays

In June 2017, Toronto Mayor John Tory announced a "Free Ride Wednesdays" program, which allowed anyone to take free trips of up to 30 minutes on every Wednesday in July 2017. [43] There were no limits to the number of trips per day. Fees applied only if any one single trip exceeded 30 minutes. [44] Free Ride Wednesdays were also held in June 2018 and August 2019. [45] Afterwards, Bike Share Toronto signed a multi-year sponsorship agreement with CAA in order to cover future Free Ride Wednesdays. [46]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bicycle-sharing system</span> Short-time bicycle rental service

A bicycle-sharing system, bike share program, public bicycle scheme, or public bike share (PBS) scheme, is a shared transport service where bicycles are available for shared use by individuals at low cost.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toronto Parking Authority</span>

The Toronto Parking Authority (TPA), commonly known as Green P for its green-colour branding, is a municipal parking services company owned by the City of Toronto. The TPA was established in 1998 with the merger of parking operations in the area of the former Metropolitan Toronto. A municipal parking authority in the pre-amalgamation City of Toronto was first set up in 1952, taking over management of parking from the police.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bicing</span> Bicycle sharing system in Barcelona, Spain

Bicing is a bicycle-sharing system in the city of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, which was implemented in March 2007, promoted by the City Council. The municipal company Barcelona de Serveis Municipals (B:SM) is the manager of the service, while the exploitation concession corresponds to Pedalem Barcelona since 2019, a Temporary Union of Companies formed by CESPA and PBSC. Between 2007 and 2018, Clear Channel was the company in charge of this task. It is similar to the Vélo'v service in Lyon or Vélib' in Paris, and uses the same bicycles and stations as used in Stockholm, Oslo, and Zaragoza. Its purpose is to cover small and medium daily routes within the city in a climate-friendly way, eliminating the pollution, roadway noise, and traffic congestion that motor vehicles create.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cycling in Toronto</span>

Toronto, Ontario, like many North American cities, has slowly been expanding its purpose-built cycling infrastructure. The number of cyclists in Toronto has been increasing progressively, particularly in the city's downtown core. As cycling conditions improve, a cycling culture has grown and alternatives such as automobiles are seen as less attractive. The politics of providing resources for cyclists, particularly dedicated bike lanes, has been contentious, particularly since the 2010s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santander Cycles</span> Public bicycle hire scheme in London

Santander Cycles is a public bicycle hire scheme in London in the United Kingdom. The scheme's bicycles have been popularly known as Boris Bikes, after Boris Johnson who was Mayor of London when the scheme began operating.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nice Ride Minnesota</span> Bike sharing system in the Minneapolis and St. Paul Minnesota area

Nice Ride Minnesota was a seasonally operated nonprofit bicycle sharing system in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota based on the BIXI brand created by Public Bike System Company and first used in Montreal. Launched on June 10, 2010, it served over 10,000 trips in its first month and reached 100,817 rides in the first season of operation. The bicycles in the system are manufactured by Cycles Devinci. They are painted fluorescent green and include a cargo carrier and headlights. They receive daily maintenance, and are redistributed throughout the system via truck.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Capital Bikeshare</span> Bike sharing system in the Washington, D.C., area

Capital Bikeshare is a bicycle-sharing system that serves Washington, D.C., and certain counties of the larger metropolitan area. As of January 2023, it had 700+ stations and more than 5,400 bicycles. The member jurisdictions own most of the equipment and have sourced operations to contractor Motivate International. Opened in September 2010, the system was the largest bike sharing service in the United States until New York City's Citi Bike began operations in May 2013.

BCycle is a public bicycle sharing company owned by Trek Bicycle and is based in Waterloo, Wisconsin, United States. It has 34 local systems operating in cities across the United States. However, in several cities it operates under a name other than BCycle

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bluebikes</span> Bike sharing system in the Boston, Massachusetts metropolitan area

Bluebikes, originally Hubway, is a bicycle sharing system in the Boston metropolitan area. As of 2023, the system had deployed 480 stations with a fleet of over 5,300 bikes in the 10 municipalities it served. Bluebikes is operated by Motivate and uses technology provided by 8D Technologies and PBSC Urban Solutions for equipment. The bike share program officially launched in Boston as Hubway. From 2012 to 2021, neighboring municipalities of Brookline, Cambridge, Somerville, Everett, Newton, Arlington, Chelsea, Watertown, and Salem joined the system. By 2020, total annual members neared 23,000, and as of 2021, 14 million total rides have been taken.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bixi (bicycle share system)</span> Public bicycle sharing system in Canada

Bixi is a public bicycle sharing system serving the metropolitan area of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Motivate LLC is a company based in New York City that services bicycle sharing systems and other urban services in North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Melbourne Bike Share</span>

Melbourne Bike Share was a bicycle-sharing system that served the central business district of Melbourne, Australia. The stations and bicycles were owned by the government and operated in a public–private partnership with RACV. Launched in 2010, the network utilized a system designed by Montreal-based PBSC Urban Solutions with 600 bicycles operating from 51 stations. Melbourne Bike Share was one of two such systems in Australia until the Victorian Government shut down the service on 30 November 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Citi Bike</span> Bike sharing system in the New York City area

Citi Bike is a privately owned public bicycle sharing system serving the New York City boroughs of the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens, as well as Jersey City and Hoboken, New Jersey. Named after lead sponsor Citigroup, it was operated by Motivate, with former Metropolitan Transportation Authority CEO Jay Walder as chief executive until September 30, 2018, when the company was acquired by Lyft. The system's bikes and stations use technology from Lyft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bay Wheels</span>

Bay Wheels is a regional public bicycle sharing system in California's San Francisco Bay Area. It is operated by Motivate in a partnership with the Metropolitan Transportation Commission and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District. Bay Wheels is the first regional and large-scale bicycle sharing system deployed in California and on the West Coast of the United States. It was established as Bay Area Bike Share in August 2013. As of January 2018, the Bay Wheels system had over 2,600 bicycles in 262 stations across San Francisco, East Bay and San Jose.

Lyft Urban Solutions, formerly PBSC Urban Solutions and originally Public Bike System Company, is an international bicycle-sharing system equipment vendor with their headquarters based in Longueuil, Quebec. The company develops bicycle-sharing systems, equipment, parts, and software, and sells its products to cities in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Spain, Brazil and more. The company has sold about 280,000 bikes and 13,000 stations to 50 cities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indiana Pacers Bikeshare</span> Public bike-sharing system in Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.

Indiana Pacers Bikeshare, also known as Pacers Bikeshare, is a public bicycle-sharing system in Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. The service is operated by BCycle, a public bicycle-sharing company owned by Trek Bicycle Corporation. The system launched in April 2014 with 250 bikes and 25 docking stations and has since expanded to 525 bikes and 50 stations. The service is available to users 24/7 year-round. Pacers Bikeshare is owned by and managed as a program of the Indianapolis Cultural Trail.

8D Technologies was a Canadian company that developed bicycle-sharing systems and automated parking management systems. It merged with Motivate in 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CoGo</span> Bike sharing system in Columbus, Ohio

CoGo Bike Share is a public bicycle sharing system serving Columbus, Ohio and its suburbs. The service is operated by the bikeshare company Motivate It was created in July 2013 with 300 bikes and 30 docking stations, since expanded to about 600 bikes and 80 stations. The service is operated in conjunction with the City of Columbus, which owns all equipment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MoGo (bike share)</span> Public bicycle-sharing system in Detroit

MoGo is a public bicycle-sharing system in Detroit. In operation since 2017, MoGo is owned by a nonprofit organization of the same name, headquartered at One Campus Martius in downtown Detroit.

References

  1. ↑ "Get Your Questions Answered - FAQ". Bike Share Toronto. Retrieved 2023-12-19.
  2. ↑ Toronto, Bike Share. "Bike Share Toronto and Tangerine Bank partner to help move Toronto forward". www.newswire.ca. Retrieved 2023-12-19.
  3. 1 2 Tse, Jennifer (3 May 2011). "BIXI bike-sharing officially launches in Toronto". blogTO. Retrieved 2018-01-26.
  4. ↑ Moore, Oliver (March 31, 2014). "Pricing favours repeat users under new Toronto bike-sharing program". The Globe and Mail . Retrieved 31 January 2022.
  5. ↑ Alcoba, Natalie (December 5, 2013). "Bell Media saves Bixi bike program, kicks in $5-million to pay debt, expand". National Post. Archived from the original on July 4, 2017.
  6. ↑ "Bixi Toronto Under New Management, Now Called "Bike Share Toronto" — Motivate". Motivate. Archived from the original on 2017-12-02. Retrieved 2017-12-01.
  7. ↑ Spurr, Ben (2015-06-03). "Bike Share won't expand in time for Pan Am Games". The Toronto Star. ISSN   0319-0781 . Retrieved 2017-12-01.
  8. ↑ Kalinowski, Tess (July 6, 2015). "Bike Share Toronto to double with $4.9 million from Metrolinx". Toronto Star . Retrieved 31 January 2022.
  9. ↑ Kalinowski, Tess (December 9, 2014). "Bike Share Toronto sponsor means 20 new stations next year". Toronto Star . Retrieved 31 January 2022.
  10. ↑ Keenan, Edward (January 16, 2015). "Section 37 — What it is, and why everybody's fighting about it". Toronto Star . Retrieved 31 January 2022.
  11. ↑ Brockbank, Nicole (11 April 2016). "1,000 new bikes and 120 new stations coming to Bike Share Toronto program". CBC News. Retrieved 2017-12-01.
  12. ↑ "Motivate and Toronto Parking Authority Announce Transition of Bike Share Toronto Operations — Motivate". Motivate. Retrieved 2017-12-01.
  13. ↑ "BIKE SHARE TORONTO | SHIFT TRANSIT". shifttransit.net. Retrieved 2017-12-01.[ permanent dead link ]
  14. ↑ "Bike Share Toronto expansion gives Toronto residents 70 new bike stations". City of Toronto. August 2, 2017. Archived from the original on August 10, 2017. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  15. ↑ "Bike Share Toronto 2018 Expansion - More bikes and new stations". Bike Share Toronto. 5 August 2018. Retrieved 2018-09-14.
  16. 1 2 "2019: Celebrating a Year of Milestones". Bike Share Toronto. 2 January 2020. Retrieved 2020-03-09.
  17. 1 2 "2020 Expansion: Bike Share Toronto Grows to 6,850 Bikes & 625 Stations". Bike Share Toronto. 9 June 2020. Retrieved 2020-06-09.
  18. ↑ Spurr, Ben (2020-06-09). "Amid record ridership, Toronto expanding Bike Share network into the suburbs". The Toronto Star. ISSN   0319-0781 . Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  19. ↑ Smee, Michael (14 January 2020). "Bike Share getting a big new cash infusion". CBC News. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  20. 1 2 3 4 "2020 Expansion: Bike Share Toronto Grows to 6,850 Bikes & 625 Stations". Bike Share Toronto. 6 September 2020. Archived from the original on 2020-06-09. Retrieved 2021-02-17. In the last 12 months, year over year membership has increased by 60% from 146,604 to 234,117 (May 31, 2018-2019, compared to May 31, 2019-2020).
  21. 1 2 "A Look Back At 2020 With Bike Share Toronto: The Silver Lining". Bike Share Toronto. 2 January 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-02-02. Retrieved 2021-02-17.
  22. 1 2 Moore, Oliver (2021-10-08). "Toronto's bike-share system sees pandemic boost". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  23. ↑ Allen, Jeff. "Mapping Bike Share Trips In Toronto". schoolofcities.github.io. Retrieved 2024-09-11.
  24. 1 2 "An incredible 2021 for Bike Share Toronto". Bike Share Toronto. 12 January 2022. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  25. 1 2 3 "Bike Share Toronto First Quarter (Q1) 2022 Update" (PDF). Toronto.ca. Toronto Parking Authority. 4 February 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  26. 1 2 3 Toronto Parking Authority (5 May 2021). "Improving Toronto's Bike Share Program - Report" (PDF). City of Toronto .
  27. ↑ "Bike Share 2022 Equipment Purchase" (PDF). Toronto.ca. Toronto Parking Authority. 4 February 2022.
  28. 1 2 "A look back on 2022". Bike Share Toronto. 17 January 2023. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
  29. 1 2 "Join us as we take a look back at 2023 highlights from an incredible year at Bike Share Toronto". Bike Share Toronto. 25 January 2024. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  30. ↑ "Bike Share 2024 Business Review" (PDF). Toronto.ca. Toronto Parking Authority. 8 January 2024.
  31. ↑ "Bike Share Toronto Ridership Numbers". instagram.com. Bike Share Toronto Instagram. 15 January 2024.
  32. ↑ Spurr, Ben (2016-07-05). "Bike Share Toronto rolls into the big time with major expansion". The Toronto Star. Retrieved 2020-03-09.
  33. ↑ "New Recommended Bike Share Toronto Pricing and Pass Options". Bike Share Toronto. Retrieved 2023-12-18.
  34. ↑ "Reduced Fare Pass Program". Bike Share Toronto. Retrieved 2023-12-18.
  35. ↑ "Corporate Membership Program". Bike Share Toronto. Retrieved 2023-12-18.
  36. ↑ "Quote from PBSC Urban Solutions Inc" (PDF). City of Toronto website.
  37. ↑ "Bike Share Toronto 2024 Business Review" (PDF). City of Toronto website.
  38. ↑ "CycleFinder / PBSC app". Bike Share Toronto.
  39. ↑ "INTRODUCING BIKE SHARE TORONTO'S NEW MOBILE APP". Newswire.
  40. ↑ "Toronto Bike Share gets new life with TD sponsorship". CBC News. December 9, 2014.
  41. ↑ "Bike Share Program Financial Considerations" (PDF). Toronto Parking Authority . 20 November 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2019-06-14. Retrieved 17 Feb 2021.
  42. ↑ "Bike Share Toronto and Tangerine Bank partner to help move Toronto forward". Tangerine Bank . 4 May 2023. Retrieved 15 Aug 2023.
  43. ↑ Mezzanotte, Rita (June 23, 2017). "Mayor John Tory and Bike Share Toronto roll out Free Ride Wednesdays in July". bikesharetoronto.com.
  44. ↑ Rider, David (June 23, 2017). "Bike Share Toronto hits ridership record, offers free Wednesday rides in July". Toronto Star.
  45. ↑ "Free Ride Wednesdays are back". Bike Share Toronto. June 1, 2018.
  46. ↑ "Bike Share forms multi-year partnership with CAA". Bike Share Toronto.

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Bike Share Toronto at Wikimedia Commons

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.