Spokies

[Pete]

Just received this:



Hello Spokies members,

Downtown Oklahoma City, Inc. and the City of Oklahoma City are proud to announce that the Spokies Bike Share program is up and running again! We corrected some software and credit card processing issues and welded the locks to the bikes so they can no longer be stripped from the docks and stolen.

The Spokies bikes were put back in the stations last Monday before the first NBA Finals game, and since then, our staff and partners have been doing extensive testing on the kiosks.

Feel free start using the Spokies bikes again, and let us know if you experience any difficulties. If you have additional questions or comments for us, please contact Brandi Morrow in the DOKC office. The number is 405-235-3500 and her email is brandi@downtownokc.com

Thanks for your patience during our time for repairs. Ride on!

[Garin]

Just another waste of money on something that no one will use and others will vandalize..... Quit wasting my tax dollars on crap like this!

[Just the facts]

Just another waste of money on something that no one will use and others will vandalize..... Quit wasting my tax dollars on crap like this!

Two things. 1) People do use it. 2) Not all tax dollars are yours.

[Pete]

When launched, they said they expected the program to at least break even, so there shouldn't be any tax money involved.

[OKCisOK4me]

Just another waste of money on something that no one will use and others will vandalize..... Quit wasting my tax dollars on crap like this!

Can you confirm with a link that your tax dollars were used on this? Also, if you don't want anything else to be built with your tax dollars cause you think it's stupid, there are plenty of suburbs here for you to go spend in.

[Bellaboo]

Just another waste of money on something that no one will use and others will vandalize..... Quit wasting my tax dollars on crap like this!

Your paid tax contribution to this project was probably less than .19 cents....................

[catch22]

I use this about 2-3 times a month. Very good program, I enjoy using it.

[soonerguru]

Just another waste of money on something that no one will use and others will vandalize..... Quit wasting my tax dollars on crap like this!

No offense, but you probably have no idea where your tax dollars are being spent if you think this is "a waste."

[betts]

I go by the racks all the time and there are always different numbers of bikes in all of them. They all look like they're being used, and I suspect as the weather cools, use will increase. I've got a flat tire on my bike, and it's very tempting to avoid the trouble of repairing it and using a Spokie, especially since there are two racks within easy, easy walking distance.

[catch22]

The Spokies program has actually motivated me to think about buying a bike of my own.

[OKCTalker]

I own a bike and will never use Spokies, but I'm glad that it's available to others, and I'm happy to pay a little bit to support the program.

[OKCTalker]

The Journal Record reports today that another station is being/has been added in Automobile Alley. The story is behind the JR's pay wall. Anybody know the details?

[mcca7596]

The Journal Record reports today that another station is being/has been added in Automobile Alley. The story is behind the JR's pay wall. Anybody know the details?

Good, I never understood why they thought that the Memorial station would effectively cover AA in the first place. With its plethora of new shops, I'm sure there are now visitors who only come to AA and don't get by the Memorial or over to Midtown, so having a station in such a visible area is important.

[Pete]

The Journal Record reports today that another station is being/has been added in Automobile Alley. The story is behind the JR's pay wall. Anybody know the details?

The Spokies website says a new location is coming soon to 9th & Broadway.

Great news... Always thought it was strange that AA had been left off the original plan.


Also, they just announced the addition of lights to the bikes -- great idea.

[Pete]

Film Row would be a perfect location. I just tweeted them about this.


I wonder if they would put a station near 23rd? May be too far outside their desired geography.

[Pete]

Here is Spokies' reply to my tweet:

There aren't currently plans for a kiosk in Film Row, but it's certainly at the top of our list when the program expands in 2013

[OKCTalker]

I listened to a brief update on Spokies this morning. Bullet points (some of which have probably been previously reported here):

- It's not a bike rental program, it's a bike sharing program (people are still confused, thinking they can walk up and rent a bike for a short ride)
- Memberships are $5/day, $20/month or $75/year, plus user fees of $0 if used < 30 minutes, $2 for each additional 30 minutes, with a max fee of $75 per day
- Unless you don't bring the bike back in 48 hours, which will cost you $500
- There are 95 bikes in 6 stations, with the 7th station planned for Automobile Alley
- OUHSC has expressed an interest in bike sharing (unclear if it would be their own or in conjunction with Spokies)
- When record temperatures subsided, they were experiencing just under 1,000 rides per month (they didn't mention goals or expectations)
- Bike maintenance is performed by the same guy who maintains their network (seemed odd to me that the wouldn't contract this to Schlegel or a local bike shop)

[Spartan]

Me and my pop took it for a spin a few times before I left, and I loved it, and even more importantly he was blown away and has done it more just for fun since. Even ran into Sid and had a pleasant chat!

[BBatesokc]

- It's not a bike rental program, it's a bike sharing program (people are still confused, thinking they can walk up and rent a bike for a short ride)

Interesting, considering on their own website they say..... "additional charges apply after your 30-minute rental period at all times at the rate of $2 per half hour." and "The Spokies program is designed to be a transportation method to get from one popular downtown location to another, thus the 30-minute rental period." and "What should I do with the bike if I go into a business or restaurant during my rental time?"

Call it what you will - you put a bunch of bikes in an entertainment area with lots of local and visitor foot traffic and make the bikes available for a charge and the public is going to consider it a bike rental program. Also, you "can walk up and rent a bike for a short ride" - $5 for 30 minutes at a time for an entire day for a pay-as-you-go rate it appears.

[BadBear]

Helmet use was being discussed over on the Level thread, and it made me think of this article I found on Twitter a few days ago.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/30/su...pagewanted=all

[Urbanized]

Maybe THIS is the future of bicycle helmets...

[CaptDave]

That is an excellent concept. I need to find out more about it - weight? comfort? etc...... I wonder if it would be possible to incorporate it into a jacket for cold weather riding......

[catch22]

I've noticed in general more and more people riding around on Spokies.

Love the program, I use it quite often now.

[Just the facts]

"What should I do with the bike if I go into a business or restaurant during my rental time?"

You have 2 choices. 1) Lock it up and pay the fee for the additional time or 2) Put it back in a kiosk (thus not incurring any additional fees) and hope there is a bike there when you decide to leave. This program is designed for option 2 as the bike is supposed to get you from point A to point B, not be your personal mode of transport for 4 or 5 hours.

[BBatesokc]

You have 2 choices. 1) Lock it up and pay the fee for the additional time or 2) Put it back in a kiosk (thus not incurring any additional fees) and hope there is a bike there when you decide to leave. This program is designed for option 2 as the bike is supposed to get you from point A to point B, not be your personal mode of transport for 4 or 5 hours.

Actually (and maybe you realized this and I just couldn't tell), I wasn't "asking" I was "quoting" the Spokies website - showing that they themselves actually consider it a 'rental' service as disputed by another poster.