Golden Valley Extends LimeBike Pilot Project to 2019
If you’ve driven through Golden Valley at any point in the last few months, chances are that you noticed lime green bikes scattered throughout the city.
“At the height there were about 50 bikes that were deployed throughout the city,” said Marc Nevinski, Golden Valley’s physical development director.
LimeBike formally debuted in Golden Valley in July after the city partnered with the company on a pilot project. The dockless biking system allows people to look for a bike using an app on their phone, and unlock it by paying a fee.
“They’re available for people to make short trips. Maybe the last mile from a transit stop to a destination,” Nevinski said. “They’re really an additional or an alternative mode of transportation for people to utilize.”
Nevinski says the bikes received heavy usage in the summer months. Lime scooters were also a big hit when they debuted in September.
Yet any new concept has its growing pains. The city heard concerns about bikes blocking sidewalks or ending up in neighboring cities that didn’t have a direct relationship with LimeBike.
“But really I think as time has gone on, that concern has not been a big one,” Nevinski said.
Well-Received by Golden Valley
Nevinski says that, overall, the public liked the LimeBike program. The city council felt the same way.
“They would like to continue to experiment and run sort of another pilot program through 2019 and see what it looks like when we have a full year of use,” he said.
The plan is to eventually collect enough data to determine what role bike sharing will play in Golden Valley for years to come.
“Because Golden Valley is a first ring suburb, we’ve got a lot of parks. We’ve got good trails. We have a lot of amenities,” Nevinski said. “This is an asset that definitely can work in Golden Valley.”
The city says next year’s deployment could feature more scooters and electric assist bikes. Nevinski expects the company to collect the bikes scattered across Golden Valley by the end of November.
