BACK IN THE SADDLE?

For two years Lime Bikes were ubiquitous in the City of Ithaca. But that doesn’t mean they were universally loved. And while many regret their departure, others don’t miss the side e ects of the program.

Back in 2018 the City of Ithaca, Bike Walk Tompkins and the Center for Community Transportation (CCT) partnered with a company called Lime Bike to bring a dock-less bike-sharing program to Ithaca. However, in March 2020 the company decided to end its operations in the city and pull all their bikes o the streets—citing a decrease in revenue and safety restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic. ere were hints, however, that the company le because of objections to expanding its program to include more powerful rentable scooters.

Although many residents were appreciative of increased accessibility to a more environmentally friendly means of transportation, the city ran into problems with Lime’s dock-less bikeshare protocol. In a dock-less program there are no centralized locations for bikes to be picked up or le o . Instead, riders nd an unused bike, rent it, and then leave it wherever they choose when they’re done. At City meetings residents and business owners would regularly voice complaints about bikes being irresponsibly scattered around causing increased congestion on sidewalks.

Despite the issues with the Lime program, there was almost universal support for the idea of bike sharing as a way to encourage a more environmentally friendly and healthy means of transportation in the city.

According to CCT Executive Director Jennifer Dotson, when Lime shut down operations in Ithaca in March of 2020, the company le the city with the knowledge and infrastructure in place to create its own local bikeshare service, one with the goal of sustainability, not pro tability. “It's really typical for large corporations to pull out of a small market where there isn't a lot of money to be made. ey're not going to stick around.” e implication is that a lower pressure for pro tability will mean that more resources can be devoted to ensuring that inactive bikes don’t become an eyesore and sidewalk hazard.

Dotson continued saying that while “we're not interested in making a huge pro t, we're interested in paying our sta really healthy wages because they do good work. And the entire team is very valued.” said Dotson.

Recently, as part of a collaborative search process that involved the City of Ithaca and other community stakeholders, the CCT announced that Je Goodmark will be serving as the CCT Director of Micromobility. Goodmark was General Manager of Collegetown Bagels and was previously the Operations Manager for Lime. According to the CCT, he is charged with leading the launch of a new communityrun e-bikeshare program for the city.

Regarding his past experience with Lime, Goodmark said, “Launching a micro-mobility program in Ithaca was a valuable and rewarding experience.” He continued saying, “As part of the CCT team, I am excited to partner with the city and other community stakeholders in launching a new e-bikeshare program enabling local control and long-term sustainability.”

Acting Mayor Laura Lewis expressed her support for the selection of Goodmark saying, “I’m pleased to hear of Je ’s selection as Director of Micro-Mobility at CCT. He brings a tremendous depth of experience and commitment. I look forward to our work together in the future.”

According to CCT Executive Director Jennifer Dotson, “Je brings a wide range of experience in micro mobility.” She continued saying, “We worked with him when he was managing the Lime eet locally and got to know his responsiveness and dedication. We are con dent that under his leadership, Ithaca’s bikeshare will be extremely successful.”

Dotson recently told e Ithaca Times that “we have been planning for a spring launch, but there is the possibility we may be able to put things together to have some bikes on the streets this fall.”

If it’s fully implemented Ithaca Bikeshare will have a eet of roughly 300 to 400 DROP electric pedal assist bikes. However, due to supply chain issues and nancial constraints of nonpro ts

By Matt Dougherty

The DROP bike which would be used in the proposed bike-share program is designed for light weight and energy efficiency. (Photo: Matt Dougherty)

the program is expected to launch with around 100 bikes.

Dost Bikes, the company that produces the DROP e-bike says, “ e DROP has a traditional drivetrain that uses the SRAM X5 derailleur to change gears and KMC roller chain to transmit power to the rear wheel. is tried and tested design boasts the lightest weight and highest energy ef ciency of any design, translating into longer range for those looking to squeeze every last mile from their e-bike.” e Dost Bikes website lists the cost of one DROP ebike at $3,199.

According to Dotson, the industry is really focused on electric pedal assist bikes. “We’re not talking about like the really, really Zippy ones that you see going 25 miles an hour. What we're talking about is something that when you pedal, it gives you a little boost,” said Dotson.

While exact prices remain unknown, Dotson says that residents will probably be able to rent a bike using an app on their phone for “between $1.50 and $3 depending on the ride length.” She continued saying, “there’s a fee to unlock and then some number of cents per minute.”

In addition, there will be an a ordable option to give more people the ability to participate. Dotson said that there will “almost certainly be an extremely low cost if not free option for something like a monthly pass.”

According to Dotson, this more a ordable option will likely resemble the Ithaca Carshare Easy Access program. Membership of the Easy Access program pay a $10 per month fee in exchange for a $15 per month driving credit that can be used for hourly and mileage rates. Unused monthly credits rollover for up to 6 months. e DROP bikes can be charged with the battery in place, or the battery can be removed to be charged externally. Since CCT is anticipating having hundreds of bikes, they’re planning on having a large reserve of charged batteries that their sta would use to replace depleted bike batteries. According to Dotson, CCT employees will be changing the batteries whenever necessary and putting the bikes back on the street.

Dotson recently said that CCT is “working with the City on an agreement to allow to proposed program to operate on city streets.” She continued saying, “We don't want to put bikes out before we have an agreement with the City, so we really want to work with the Common Council to make sure that's actually happening and I’m hoping that we can do that very quickly.”

CCT is also in conversations with Cornell about whether or not the university is going to authorize the planned bike share program to operate on campus. However, Dotson recently said, “we're not sure it's exactly going to happen there.” There are many people who use the Black Diamond Trail to commute by bike from Trumansburg to Ithaca. (Photo: Elijah de Castro)

Ithaca cyclists, whether riding their own bicycle or using a sharing bike from a new program, will soon nd it easier to safely ride through the City. Amongst the provisions of President Joe Biden’s $1.2 trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is billions in funding for the Transportation Alternatives Program, which supports projects for small-scale transportation like beefing up local bicycle facilities and funding the construction of accompanying trails. In Ithaca, $2.2 million has been dedicated towards connecting the Black Diamond Trail and the Gateway Trail, two major bike paths on opposite sides of Ithaca. e Black Diamond Trail is an 8.5mile trail that connects Taughannock Park with Ithaca, allowing people in Trumansburg to commute via bike. e Gateway Trail runs from the South Hill Recreation Way to the parking lot of Home Depot on Route 13, where it will likely connect to the Black Diamond Trail.

When completed, the Dryden Rail trail will be a 14-mile trail that connects Dryden and Ithaca. Currently, the trail is being completed a er U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand secured $700,000 in federal funding to cover extra budget expenses.

Nicole Friske is the associate director of Bike Walk Tompkins, a non-pro t organization in Ithaca that advocates for the expansion of bicycling accessibility in the county. Friske said that while many use the bike trails in the county for the purpose of exercise and leisure, many also use it as a transportation path to get into Ithaca from surrounding towns.

“When we’re talking to the local businesses, to the schools and to people who are biking, we hear tons of stories of people using the Dryden Rail Trail and the Black Diamond Trail for commuting,” Friske said.

While the Ithaca area has miles of bikefriendly trails and paths that are used for exercise and leisure, accessibility of biking as a mode of transportation is still limited. Currently, there are only two streets in the City of Ithaca that have two-way bike lanes: Elmira Road and North Cayuga Street. While some streets have one-way bike lanes or have been optimized to accommodate bicyclists, much of the city’s streets have no bike infrastructure.

In addition to overseeing the federal grant, Bike Walk Tompkins has introduced a proposal to the city government called the “Better Bike Network.” e proposal calls for two networks of new bike paths—an “Ithaca’s Flats” network and an “East Hill” network—that would add bike lanes to key streets in both downtown Ithaca and on East Hill. e paths would connect together areas of the city with large commercial activity. e additional lanes would improve safety, not just connectivity. In Ithaca, there have been notable bicycle accidents that have occurred in intersections with heavy tra c. Additionally, the uneven roads and high amount of potholes can make biking a risk. A study from 2019 by University of Colorado Denver found that American cities that invest in building bicycle infrastructure have signi cantly lower rates of cyclist fatalities.

Armin Heurich is the former president of the Finger Lakes Cycling Club, a group that coordinates group rides and advocates for bike safety. In 2017, Heurich’s daughter survived an accident while riding her bicycle on Albany Street a er a motorist ran a red light. Since traveling to cities in Europe and seeing their bike infrastructure, Heurich has been supportive of more robust street infrastructure to increase road safety for cyclists.

“If you’re a young cyclist it can be very challenging and dangerous,” Heurich said. “I think a lot of parents don't want their kids to ride on the streets without them being present. Sometimes I feel like there's a profound lack of imagination or lack of creative thinking about how we can do these things right.”

Friske said they believe that by improving the streets of Ithaca for biking, potential new bikers will then feel safer to begin biking through Ithaca.

“I imagine that through all of these necessary changes in infrastructure, anyone can make a choice to safely use a bicycle to get to where they need in Tompkins County,” Friske said. “ at's what I envision.” — Elijah de Castro