CaBi Open House, Jan. 28, 6-8 pm: Price increase proposal

[PotomacCyclist]

http://www.capitalbikeshare.com/news/2015/01/08/save-the-date-for-capital-bikeshares-open-house

Save the Date for Capital Bikeshare’s Open House
Posted on Jan 08, 2015

You’re invited to be part of the conversation that will shape Capital Bikeshare’s future. Join representatives from all four jurisdictions that own the system at the Martin Luther King Jr. Library, 901 G St. NW for the Capital Bikeshare Open House on Wednesday, January 28 from 6pm – 8pm. The Open House will feature conversations on price changes, future expansion, rider policy and more. We’ll also have a trivia table, with fun factoids on display from the 4+ years of Capital Bikeshare and other notable information.

At the Open House, Capital Bikeshare will offer information on the first proposed price increase in more than four years of operation. Since our launch in 2010, we’ve added more than 200 stations, doubled our regional footprint into two additional jurisdictions, and seen daily trips increase from an average of 1,000 in October 2010 to more than 10,000 in October 2014 – all while the price has remained constant.

The proposed new annual membership fee is $85 and would take effect this spring. Even with the $10 increase, the proposed rate is much lower than other major metropolitan US systems like New York ($149) and on par with Boston ($85); and will help us continue to provide the highest quality service for the first and, by station count, largest bikeshare system in the country. Usage fees for trips over 30 minutes would remain unchanged. The complete proposed price increases are below:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]7393[/ATTACH]

There will continue to be options for reduced price memberships for qualifying individuals through programs like Bank on DC, and we will continue our monthly installment plan for those who want to spread out their cost.

At the Open House, we want to hear your feedback on the proposed changes. Please join representatives from each of the four participating jurisdictions at the MLK Jr. Memorial Library on January 28 and make your voice heard.

If you can’t attend in person, you can still offer input on the proposed price changes. We will be taking comments until February 15, 2015. Please email: pricing@capitalbikeshare.com

Topic

[PotomacCyclist]

I expect some people to complain about the price increase proposal. The annual fee will increase by 13%. But it’s only $10 and it remains a good deal for those who use the service frequently, and even for those who only use the service on an irregular basis. If you replace a two-way Metro trip, you avoid $5-6 in Metro fare. (I’m guessing that not too many people will bike farther than that, where a one-way Metro trip would be much greater than $3.) If you commute on CaBi for about 3 weeks, you will break even on the CaBi annual membership.

Prices haven’t increased for annual members in four years. Costs increase, including labor costs for staff members who rebalance stations and repair bikes/stations.

I won’t say I’m overjoyed by this news, but I can live with it. If you disagree or agree with this, you have a chance to speak with the CaBi jurisdiction reps on Jan. 28. Or send them an email at the address listed above.

[PotomacCyclist]

Did anyone go to the open house yesterday? I didn’t go, and I’m not seeing any posts on the CaBi website or CaBi Facebook page either.

While the new fare structure was already available, I would be interested to hear updates about future expansion. Is anything happening with the Motivate (Alta)/8D partnership? Will that bring in new stations and bike models?

[dasgeh]

@PotomacCyclist 106920 wrote:

Did anyone go to the open house yesterday? I didn’t go, and I’m not seeing any posts on the CaBi website or CaBi Facebook page either.

While the new fare structure was already available, I would be interested to hear updates about future expansion. Is anything happening with the Motivate (Alta)/8D partnership? Will that bring in new stations and bike models?

More on this soon, but we’ll also have a representative of Capital Bikeshare at February’s Arlington Bicycle Advisory Committee meeting (next Monday, 7pm, 2100 Clarendon Blvd) to discuss…

[Tim Kelley]

We were there. There is an official recap coming out momentarily.

If you’re curious about expansion plans in Arlington, here’s the long term plan http://www.bikearlington.com/pages/bikesharing/arlington-bikeshare-transit-development-plan/

And here’s the map:[ATTACH]7703[/ATTACH]

[PotomacCyclist]

Good to see that the National Airport station is still on the timeline.

I’m interested in the DC expansion plans too, including additional docks for existing downtown stations as well as stations in new CaBi neighborhoods. I look forward to the official recap.

[Tim Kelley]

Storify recap: https://storify.com/goDCgo/wrapping-up-the-capital-bikeshare-open-house

[dasgeh]

@Tim Kelley 106924 wrote:

And here’s the map:[ATTACH]7703[/ATTACH]

Am I the only one who can’t pull up the map?

[PotomacCyclist]

Clicking on the link downloads a PDF file onto your computer. It doesn’t open in a browser window.

[dasgeh]

@PotomacCyclist 106949 wrote:

Clicking on the link downloads a PDF file onto your computer. It doesn’t open in a browser window.

Ah, that’s why. It’s getting bounced by the firewall. Bummer.

[PotomacCyclist]

Membership fees will increase on May 1. Current members can lock in the existing prices by renewing by April 30, regardless of when your membership expires. If you add a year to your annual membership, that year will be added onto the end of your current membership. For example, if your membership expires on Aug. 30, 2015, you can add another year now (before Apr. 30) at the lower price. That will extend your membership to Aug. 30, 2016.

A couple other items that I don’t remember seeing before:

– As of May 1, Capital Bikeshare will no longer place a $101 hold on the credit cards of short-term members: https://www.capitalbikeshare.com/news/2015/03/04/101-authorization-hold-to-be-removed

– Capital Bikeshare will add enhanced rebalancing techniques like bike corrals in high-ridership areas during peak usage hours and improved data analysis for operations. CaBi will also expand to “underserved regions” of the Capital Bikeshare service area.

Some of us have suggested bike corrals as a routine feature before. They have bike corrals at special events, like Nats opening day and large events on the National Mall, but never for regular weekday rush hours. Now it appears that they could do this. This would be an excellent idea, if they can manage it properly. All of the downtown DC stations fill up quickly on weekday mornings (especially around Farragut Square, McPherson Square, Metro Center and Gallery Place). Those stations empty out as quickly on weekday evenings. Many people use CaBi for workday commutes. Even if that wasn’t the original purpose for the system, that’s how it has been used by many people over the past 4.5 years. If they can’t add super-sized stations or many more stations in the downtown DC area, then a regular bike corral system could work. The demand is very high for docks and bikes in those areas on weekdays, as any regular user can tell you.

Freedom Plaza on Pennsylvania Ave. has been used as a temporary bike corral location in the past. That might work, unless there are aesthetic objections with having a bike corral there every morning and evening. Franklin Square has plenty of space and it’s located right in the heart of the high-demand area. McPherson and Farragut Squares are smaller but they might be able to host smaller bike corrals. I’m eager to learn more about the specifics of this new program.

http://www.capitalbikeshare.com/news/2015/03/04/capital-bikeshare-prices-to-increase-may-1

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