Photo by Jay Paul
The long-anticipated RVA Bike Share, which allows users to check out a bicycle for short trips via an app, finally rolled off the line on Aug. 29, 2017.
Since then, 220 black-and-white bicycles, parked at 15 curbside docking stations spread between Scott’s Addition and Church Hill, have completed 11,607 trips — and counting. Sharon North, a spokeswoman for the Richmond Department of Public Works, says that there’s been uptick in use in recent months. During the second quarter of 2018, the city recorded an average of about 1,200 trips per month, with an average of 3,500 miles ridden each month.
North says that 20 additional stations are being produced by Bewegen, the Canadian supplier of technology and equipment for RVA Bike Share. Locations have not been finalized, but preparations will take place this winter to install new docking stations in the spring of 2019, she says. There are also plans to retrofit each bike with an electric-assist function, beginning in November.
