Bike sharing made its debut in our area this spring when Greenride Bikeshare began operation with 17 hubs across Burlington, South Burlington and Winooski. Now, nearly six months and 5,860 trips later, Greenride is wrapping up a successful opening summer.
Greenride Bikeshare works through the Social Bicycles app. Users pick a membership level during sign up, use the app to see where bicycle are located, and use their account and pin number to unlock bikes at hubs. Users can pay for monthly or annual subscriptions or just take a Quick Trip. The bikes are perfect for trips around Burlington, with an average distance travelled per session of 1.86 miles.
Bike sharing has become a popular mode of alternative transportation in cities across the country. Users are attracted to these programs for a variety of reasons including, cutting down on vehicle costs and decreasing their carbon footprint. Since its inception Greenride Bikeshare has eliminated nearly 13,500 lbs. of carbon pollution in the atmosphere.
As of late August, Greenride Bikeshare now boasts nearly 2500 individual users. In total users saved $8,785 in transportation expenses like gas and car repairs. Increased ridership also helps users stay healthy. Users burned over 605,000 calories since the program began in April.
Expansion has already begun as 25 new bikes were added to the fleet last month. Greenride is also examining potential for additional hub stations as a way to increase access to their fleet.
Bikes and hubs are expected to remain available and open throughout the winter. For more information about Greenride head to their website or “Like” them on Facebook.