CaBi system software upgrade in early February

[PotomacCyclist]

Update from Capital Bikeshare:

SERVICE ALERT
System to Undergo Significant Software Upgrade Beginning Feb. 3 at 7pm.

For the first time in our four year history, Capital Bikeshare will undergo a significant upgrade to the operational software that powers the system. The upgrade will improve the user experience for our members by expanding the management tools available to the program’s governing jurisdictions, and to our operations contractor, Motivate International Inc. (formerly Alta Bicycle Share). The new system software will also allow us to begin testing new equipment for future expansion.

The upgrade process will begin at 7pm on Tuesday, February 3, and last between 16 to 24 hours, during which time there will be a significant impact on users of the system. During the upgrade:

– Credit card rentals will not be available at Capital Bikeshare stations
– Key-holding members (annual, monthly, daily key) will not be able to rent bikes from the same station more than once during the upgrade process. However, these members will still be able to rent bikes from one station and drop them off at the same or another station
– New memberships or renewals will not be available on the Capital Bikeshare website (http://www.capitalbikeshare.com)
– Updates on station and bike availability will not be generated for websites, maps and mobile apps (including Spotcycle)
– The “time credit” feature will not be available at Capital Bikeshare stations

Because credit card rentals at stations will not be available, we will temporarily stop kiosk membership sales for 3-day passes on Saturday, January 31 at 7pm, and temporarily cease all 24-hour membership sales on Monday February 2 at 7pm. Short term rentals will be available again upon the completion of the software update.

We will provide updates via our social media accounts, so stay tuned to Facebook and Twitter during the upgrade process. We are making every effort to minimize the disruption this may cause. We thank you in advance for your patience as we work to improve Capital Bikeshare.

Sincerely,

The Capital Bikeshare Team

[PotomacCyclist]

The system software upgrade is scheduled for 7 pm on Tuesday, to continue through Wed. afternoon or evening.

If you have out-of-town guests, be sure to tell them that credit card rentals will not be available during the software upgrade.

Spotcycle and website updates on bike/station info will not be available during the upgrade. Key members can only rent bikes from any particular station once during the upgrade period.

The good news is that the new software will allow the system operator to begin testing new equipment for later expansion. If the upgrade is successful, this should mean that Motivate will be able to add the new “Seattle-type” kiosks to Capital Bikeshare and non-Bixi bikes that are being used in the new Seattle bikeshare system. This could break up the equipment logjam that has held back expansion throughout the system. DC, Arlington, Alexandria and Montgomery Co. (College Park) are all planning to expand the CaBi network in their territories. DDOT has spoken about adding and/or expanding as many as 40 stations. Montgomery Co. wants to add new stations to College Park.

Pronto Cycle Share in the Seattle area is also operated by Motivate. They are using stations designed by 8D and Motivate, 8D software, and bicycles from French manufacturer Arcade Cycles.

Tomorrow is as good a day as any for a software upgrade. I doubt there will be many new users trying to rent bikes on Tue. evening when it will be dark and the temperatures will be in the low 30s. The temperature will remain in the 30s overnight, but it will climb on Wed. morning, reaching the mid to upper 40s by the afternoon. Hopefully the upgrade will be finished by then. But it’s not the peak tourist season, so there may not be too many new customers trying to rent bikes that day either.

[PotomacCyclist]

The system software upgrade is still continuing. Bike/station info are unavailable (on the Capital Bikeshare website and on the Spotcycle smartphone app). You can only check out a bike once from a particular station, until the upgrade is complete. Spotcycle lists every station as having zero bikes and zero available docks.

The upgrade is scheduled to be completed by 7 pm tonight. Monitor their website and Facebook/Twitter pages for the latest updates.

https://www.facebook.com/CapitalBikeshare

http://www.capitalbikeshare.com/home

https://twitter.com/bikeshare

[PotomacCyclist]

They still haven’t announced that the software upgrade is officially complete, but the website map is available now. There is updated info on bike and dock availability. There are new graphics too, with a red and yellow circle over each station. This provides a quick reference on bikes and docks, yellow for bikes and red for docks available at the station. You can click on each circle for detailed info. I just wish that you could close out the info box by clicking somewhere else on the map. Instead, you have to click on the X mark to close out the window. (Many websites let you click anywhere outside of such pop-up boxes to close out the box/window. The Spotcycle app works this way too.) If you could click elsewhere, it would be easier to check on multiple stations in a neighborhood.

Both the CaBi website and the Spotcycle app appear to be synced with each other and with the stations, based on a quick spot check I just did. Customer account info is available again after logging in on the website.

[scoot]

Potomac Cyclist,

FYI

It may look like you’re talking to yourself here, but I (and I’m sure others as well) do appreciate the frequent updates on all things CaBi. Thanks!

[PotomacCyclist]

11:23 pm update from CaBi:

Service Alert: System Software Upgrade Status Update
Posted on Feb 04, 2015

The Capital Bikeshare system is nearing the end of the first comprehensive software upgrade in our four year history. The system servers and a majority of the stations have been updated successfully, and we are able to report the following:

– Key holding members are able to take and return bikes as usual at ALL stations.

– Live station status feeds have resumed, so Spotcycle and other web programs are now up-to-date

– CapitalBikeshare.com is back online and accepting new member registrations and allowing current members to login to their accounts

– Credit card rentals, short term membership sales and Day Keys are now accepted at a majority of stations. To find a station near you offering credit card rentals, call the customer service line at 1 (800) 430-BIKE (2543)

We appreciate your patience and understanding during this process, and are excited to utilize this new software to provide a better riding experience for all of our users. We will notify you as soon as the software update is complete.

Sincerely,

The Capital Bikeshare Team

https://www.capitalbikeshare.com/news/2015/02/04/service-alert-system-software-upgrade-status-update

[PotomacCyclist]

All features and stations are available again, as of 6:19 pm Thursday.

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