Arlington County is seeking to start a bike-sharing program as early as the fall, about a year after the District became the first area in the nation to begin one.
The county is asking companies to submit proposals to help it place bicycles around the county for people to use on trips to run errands, get to a Metro station or travel to work.
More people are looking for ways to get around besides automobiles amid the current economic crunch.
“Some are rediscovering their legs. Some are rediscovering their wheels,” said Arlington County Board member Jay Fisette, who has pushed for the bike-sharing project. “Most of them are much healthier.”
The District started SmartBike , modeled on similar programs in Europe in August. Since then, communities around the country, including Denver, Minneapolis and San Francisco, have looked into starting their own versions. Locally Montgomery County and Alexandria also are considering programs, said Paul DeMaio, a consultant with MetroBike LLC who has been helping Arlington. And D.C. is now looking to expand its program, too.
“One of the important reasons the county is even doing this is our whole philosophy of getting more people to take more public transportation,” said Chris Hamilton, Arlington County’s commuter services chief.
But unlike bike-sharing programs in Paris, Barcelona and D.C., Arlington County’s program wouldn’t be funded through advertising money. The county does not have a policy allowing on-street advertising on bus shelters, kiosks and billboards. But officials expect they could allow advertisements on the bikes themselves.
The program would encourage one-way rentals intended for trips under 5 miles, with the first 30 minutes given for free. Rides beyond 30 minutes would increase incrementally in cost.
Members also would pay a fee to join the program — about $50 annually or as little as $2 a day.
Ideally the program would have 1,400 bikes to meet a ratio of one bike per every 150 residents, DeMaio said. But the first phase of the project calls for about 100 bikes, then adding 100 more each year.
It would begin with bike racks in the Rosslyn-Ballston area, then expand to Pentagon City and Crystal City with the goal to be countywide in five years. The program has enough money from a state grant it won about three years ago to start the first phase, Hamilton said.
Not all communities have the infrastructure to support bike sharing, said Washington Area Bicyclist Association Executive Director Eric Gilliland, as they lack spots to park bikes or the dedicated lanes to make for safer riding.
But Arlington County, he said, is well-suited to start one. It is relatively densely populated and boasts 24 miles of bicycle lanes and 43 miles of signed bike routes.
