Is this CitiBike's way of putting the local bike shops out of business the same way 7-Eleven is looking to put the bodegas out of businesses? Over saturate with deep corporate pockets and wipe out the competition?
Big Brother: do these CitiBike stations repair bicycles as well sell new bikes and parts? If not, then the local bike shops can rest easy. However, it'd be nice if some of the shops took their businesses' a little more seriously: a *week* to fix a flat, install new cables and clean my bike??? Yes, a *week*.
I hate to break it to you, but not everyone that disagrees with you on this issue is a "troll".
And I'm going out on a limb and guess that CITI isn't paying anonymous trolls to flood blogs with pro-bike share comments. They are too busy spending their money lobbying your favorite politician (whoever that may be - other than Elizabeth Warren) to avoid additional regulation.
I don't even think Citi cares one way or another. $41 million for five years of continuous advertising is a no brainer.
They don't need to pay someone to troll EVGrieve. They got five years of advertising in the most visible way. It's like having NYC Taxis all painted in the Citi logo; they'll be everwhere.
People who think Citi would troll here are disillusioned that Citi actually cares about what's written. They got their ad campaign done and done for five years.
And NYC gets a bikeshare program at no cost to the taxpayer.
Anon @ 4:30: Citi isn't "splitting the profits" with the city at all. They're not making a dime off this.
And seriously, Big Brother? Good lord, everyone who supports this is a shill? Wonderful! Now, please show me how the 74% of New Yorkers who support bike share in the recent NYT/Quinnipiac poll were all paid off.
I'm not a shill, I'm a regular EV Grieve reader who cannot believe the massive amount of misinformation coming from the commenters opposed to bike share. If they bothered to learn anything about it, though, they wouldn't have anything to bitch about.
"Sorry but I'm not addressing ANY of the anonymous trolls that have taken over EV Grieve to shill for CitiBike" said the person who's using a screename ("Big Brother") and not, y'know, an actual name...
Hey Big Brother - just because someone disagrees with you does not they are trolling you. Not everything is life is "for" or "against" - sometimes it's "let's see what happens". It's frustrating to not be able to make up your mind within 3 seconds of hearing about something, but such is life...
So what happens when you bring a bike to drop off at a busy spot and there are no empty slots - do you just leave the bike or are you supposed to stand there until a spot opens up - and if you're standing there past the alloted 45 minutes? well, the tourists will figure it out, or just call 311.
Of the many things that I hate about the CitiBike thing (besides its existence) is the angle of the bike stations.
Most of them are at 90 degree angles, sticking right out into the street, while others (and I've only counted two stations like this so far) are on a diagonal bias, providing more room in the street.
Why can't they all be on a diagonal bias? If you're going to give a big fuck you to the city, can't you at least be somewhat accommodating "citi"-wide, and not just on LaGuardia Place and Greenwich Ave?
wouldn't it be nice if repair of the streets, the sewers, flooding, reconstruction of damaged buildings, etc. etc. etc. could be organized and completed with the speed and dedication of nyc government towards this alien take over of our streets by the citi-bike pods.
@ nygrump re: full stations: how its supposed to work is two fold (at least this is how it works in DC and other places) the citibike people will move bikes away from stations that are popular destinations to make sure there is room for more bikes. also there is supposed to be an app that will show you how many spots are left at a each station, and if you end up finding a full one, the idea is that there are enough stations to pedal a few blocks to the next one (I think there is also away to get extra time if you encounter a full station, not positive on the logistics though)
Also, totally excited for the bike share but no citi bank shill.
I find it hilarious that "The Shills" (yes, that's right) keep throwing up the "straw man" here, that if anyone has a problem with the tremendously intrusive and poorly thought out implementation of these crass and ugly rolling billboards, that those people are, therefor, simply opposed to a city bike share program.
Capital Bike Share in DC has actually helped bike shops. They sell more accessories such as helmets and many people use bike share as a means of low-cost, low-risk means of testing whether bike commuting is right for them.
The good news though, is that it's not a "permanent" installation (unlike the city's poorly designed and constructed bike lanes). These can just be loaded back onto a truck the same way they came off. I expect over time some will be reduced, or expanded in size. And some will be removed or just "moved". It's all an experiment. We'll se how it goes.
I don't think offering a $10 discount at any NYC bike shop to put towards a helmet is neither a) actively putting bike shops out of business nor b) promoting helmet-less riding. But what do I know? I'm just a Citi shill.
They came into my apartment last night, pulled out my stove and towed my refrigerator away, then installed a bike station that blocks me from reaching the kitchen sink.
This is a clear boondoggle for Citibank: all they need to do is adjust their books not to show a profit: "The city also says it expects the program to turn a profit, which will be split between the city and NYC Bike Share if it occurs."
I don't know why but this is really pissing me off and I'm a bike rider. Lol. I almost fell over one of them today and it just irks me that there is nowhere for me to park my bike anymore but plenty of room for this corporate bs! And bring that it is a giant advertisement for Citibank the bikes should e free!
I'm a daily year-round bike rider & support riding. That said, $10 for a day of 30-minute rides, with expensive penalties for going over the time limit, means that means tourists who want to see the sights or folks who want to picnic on the Hudson won't rent these bikes. They seem to be strictly for commuting & not very far. But no baskets, so not useful for shopping. I lock my bike pretty much in front of my destination - that's the convenience of biking, and walking even a few blocks cuts down on it. I worry too that the perpendicular docks will make it dangerous when cars sweep around the corner while someone is backing out of a bike spot. So yeah, I don't get this program. On the upside, the ugly ugly docking stations should soon be graffitied over. I hope this works out but....
Ugly. Corporate advertising. More tourists (who can join the thousands of yahoos who don't know how to bike in the city using the bike lanes). And the people who live here who will use these to 'test out' commuting (really?) are newcomers who likely want more 7-11s and IHOPs or such. Well, so it goes. Corporate interests, tourism interests, supergentrification interests...as usual, not so much New Yorker interests.
I guess the people who think this is great live in a different city than I've been living in. That's my problem, I stayed too long. But I do look forward to the drunken student and suburban hoardes taking these babies for spins at 4 a.m. on weekend nights. That should make the neighborhood even more exiciting.
28 comments:
Seeing pictures of bike share being installed makes me think of this Belinda Carlisle song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOGEyBeoBGM
I'm going to have a docking station installed in my apartment for the sake of convenience.
Is this CitiBike's way of putting the local bike shops out of business the same way 7-Eleven is looking to put the bodegas out of businesses? Over saturate with deep corporate pockets and wipe out the competition?
Big Brother: do these CitiBike stations repair bicycles as well sell new bikes and parts? If not, then the local bike shops can rest easy. However, it'd be nice if some of the shops took their businesses' a little more seriously: a *week* to fix a flat, install new cables and clean my bike??? Yes, a *week*.
Sorry but I'm not addressing ANY of the anonymous trolls that have taken over EV Grieve to shill for CitiBike.
Big Brother,
I hate to break it to you, but not everyone that disagrees with you on this issue is a "troll".
And I'm going out on a limb and guess that CITI isn't paying anonymous trolls to flood blogs with pro-bike share comments. They are too busy spending their money lobbying your favorite politician (whoever that may be - other than Elizabeth Warren) to avoid additional regulation.
I like how they're encouraging people to ride bicycles without helmet (not required to ride) only thing required is a credit card.
Hey Bloomberg, can I take a couple of parking spots myself to set up a business? I split the profits with you like citibike does.
I think this will be awesome. Once the bikes are in place these'll be the new late night urination stalls for all the downtown bar hoppers.
I don't even think Citi cares one way or another. $41 million for five years of continuous advertising is a no brainer.
They don't need to pay someone to troll EVGrieve. They got five years of advertising in the most visible way. It's like having NYC Taxis all painted in the Citi logo; they'll be everwhere.
People who think Citi would troll here are disillusioned that Citi actually cares about what's written. They got their ad campaign done and done for five years.
And NYC gets a bikeshare program at no cost to the taxpayer.
Anon @ 4:30: Citi isn't "splitting the profits" with the city at all. They're not making a dime off this.
And seriously, Big Brother? Good lord, everyone who supports this is a shill? Wonderful! Now, please show me how the 74% of New Yorkers who support bike share in the recent NYT/Quinnipiac poll were all paid off.
I'm not a shill, I'm a regular EV Grieve reader who cannot believe the massive amount of misinformation coming from the commenters opposed to bike share. If they bothered to learn anything about it, though, they wouldn't have anything to bitch about.
"Sorry but I'm not addressing ANY of the anonymous trolls that have taken over EV Grieve to shill for CitiBike" said the person who's using a screename ("Big Brother") and not, y'know, an actual name...
Hey Big Brother - just because someone disagrees with you does not they are trolling you. Not everything is life is "for" or "against" - sometimes it's "let's see what happens". It's frustrating to not be able to make up your mind within 3 seconds of hearing about something, but such is life...
Love, "Lil'Sister"
So what happens when you bring a bike to drop off at a busy spot and there are no empty slots - do you just leave the bike or are you supposed to stand there until a spot opens up - and if you're standing there past the alloted 45 minutes? well, the tourists will figure it out, or just call 311.
Of the many things that I hate about the CitiBike thing (besides its existence) is the angle of the bike stations.
Most of them are at 90 degree angles, sticking right out into the street, while others (and I've only counted two stations like this so far) are on a diagonal bias, providing more room in the street.
Why can't they all be on a diagonal bias? If you're going to give a big fuck you to the city, can't you at least be somewhat accommodating "citi"-wide, and not just on LaGuardia Place and Greenwich Ave?
7:18,
I'm also surprised that the bikes aren't at an angle. That seems like it would make much more sense.
Nygrump,
If only there was a place that had readily available information about the program and answer these very questions!
wouldn't it be nice if repair of the streets, the sewers, flooding, reconstruction of damaged buildings, etc. etc. etc. could be organized and completed with the speed and dedication of nyc government towards this alien take over of our streets by the citi-bike pods.
@ nygrump re: full stations: how its supposed to work is two fold (at least this is how it works in DC and other places) the citibike people will move bikes away from stations that are popular destinations to make sure there is room for more bikes. also there is supposed to be an app that will show you how many spots are left at a each station, and if you end up finding a full one, the idea is that there are enough stations to pedal a few blocks to the next one (I think there is also away to get extra time if you encounter a full station, not positive on the logistics though)
Also, totally excited for the bike share but no citi bank shill.
Not looking forward to having that many less parking spots in the neighborhood...
I find it hilarious that "The Shills" (yes, that's right) keep throwing up the "straw man" here, that if anyone has a problem with the tremendously intrusive and poorly thought out implementation of these crass and ugly rolling billboards, that those people are, therefor, simply opposed to a city bike share program.
Capital Bike Share in DC has actually helped bike shops. They sell more accessories such as helmets and many people use bike share as a means of low-cost, low-risk means of testing whether bike commuting is right for them.
http://www.wnyc.org/blogs/transportation-nation/2012/jun/29/dc-bike-shop-owners-see-big-returns-from-bike-share/
The good news though, is that it's not a "permanent" installation (unlike the city's poorly designed and constructed bike lanes).
These can just be loaded back onto a truck the same way they came off.
I expect over time some will be reduced, or expanded in size. And some will be removed or just "moved". It's all an experiment. We'll se how it goes.
I don't think offering a $10 discount at any NYC bike shop to put towards a helmet is neither a) actively putting bike shops out of business nor b) promoting helmet-less riding. But what do I know? I'm just a Citi shill.
They came into my apartment last night, pulled out my stove and towed my refrigerator away, then installed a bike station that blocks me from reaching the kitchen sink.
This is a clear boondoggle for Citibank:
all they need to do is adjust their books not to show a profit:
"The city also says it expects the program to turn a profit, which will be split between the city and NYC Bike Share if it occurs."
Help the Bank that has no assets: Sh*tty Bank
I don't know why but this is really pissing me off and I'm a bike rider. Lol. I almost fell over one of them today and it just irks me that there is nowhere for me to park my bike anymore but plenty of room for this corporate bs! And bring that it is a giant advertisement for Citibank the bikes should e free!
i've used the bikeshare in both paris and dublin while traveling and loved 'em. so happy new york is finally getting a similar system
I'm a daily year-round bike rider & support riding. That said, $10 for a day of 30-minute rides, with expensive penalties for going over the time limit, means that means tourists who want to see the sights or folks who want to picnic on the Hudson won't rent these bikes. They seem to be strictly for commuting & not very far. But no baskets, so not useful for shopping. I lock my bike pretty much in front of my destination - that's the convenience of biking, and walking even a few blocks cuts down on it. I worry too that the perpendicular docks will make it dangerous when cars sweep around the corner while someone is backing out of a bike spot. So yeah, I don't get this program. On the upside, the ugly ugly docking stations should soon be graffitied over. I hope this works out but....
Some of these idiotic comments are painful to read. Educate yourself before you bitch and moan. Seriously.
Ugly. Corporate advertising. More tourists (who can join the thousands of yahoos who don't know how to bike in the city using the bike lanes). And the people who live here who will use these to 'test out' commuting (really?) are newcomers who likely want more 7-11s and IHOPs or such. Well, so it goes. Corporate interests, tourism interests, supergentrification interests...as usual, not so much New Yorker interests.
I guess the people who think this is great live in a different city than I've been living in. That's my problem, I stayed too long. But I do look forward to the drunken student and suburban hoardes taking these babies for spins at 4 a.m. on weekend nights. That should make the neighborhood even more exiciting.
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