
Fort Worth Bike Sharing Program
#101
Posted 19 September 2013 - 09:45 AM
I live well south of downtown (Sycamore School Road), and there's no way I would call my area part of the Southside. Southern Sprawl might be a better name.
#102
Posted 19 September 2013 - 11:27 AM
West side.
(By the way, apologies if this is off topic, but my wife laughs at me every time I call our neighborhood "the west side". She considers the west side to be like way out west - Las Vegas Trail environs. What do forum-ers call the area within a mile or so of University & 7th, encompassing the Cultural District, West 7th, Trinity Park, UNTHSC, and the several neighborhoods from North Hi Mount to Linwood? To me saying "I live in the Cultural District" sounds like I've parked an RV in the parking lot of the Modern...)
West side.
#103
Posted 19 September 2013 - 11:24 PM
Like Kevin said, it's sharing not renting. If you decide to keep a bike to yourself all day, you will incur some hefty usage fees (up to $100!). Whereas if you check a bike out and return it in less than 30 mins, you get a $0 usage fee.
When I share with someone, I don't ask for money. "Sharing" just sounds nicer. It's marketing.
I like the bike renting program, though.
#104
Posted 20 September 2013 - 06:51 AM
(By the way, apologies if this is off topic, but my wife laughs at me every time I call our neighborhood "the west side". She considers the west side to be like way out west - Las Vegas Trail environs. What do forum-ers call the area within a mile or so of University & 7th, encompassing the Cultural District, West 7th, Trinity Park, UNTHSC, and the several neighborhoods from North Hi Mount to Linwood? To me saying "I live in the Cultural District" sounds like I've parked an RV in the parking lot of the Modern...)
I think the -side suffix implies just outside of downtown. Southside, Westside, Northside, Eastside, in my mind, all refer to areas just adjacent to Downtown (with the exception perhaps of Northside, where there is Uptown in between, kind of).
I live well south of downtown (Sycamore School Road), and there's no way I would call my area part of the Southside. Southern Sprawl might be a better name.
Russ, I agree with you saying you live on the west side, and I agree with Doohickie's interpretation of the "sides."
I also know that your wife thinks I live in the suburbs all the way out in Ridglea. While it may have been considered the suburbs back in the 1940s, it's nowhere near the suburbs now.
Back to your regularly scheduled topic.
#106
Posted 20 September 2013 - 04:15 PM
Ridglea is probably best termed a second-ring suburb, Arlington Heights being the first-ring in the west side of Fort Worth.
#107
Posted 21 September 2013 - 10:55 PM
Ridglea is probably best termed a second-ring suburb, Arlington Heights being the first-ring in the west side of Fort Worth.
Are those some kind of standardized terms?
Is that due to distance from city-center, or density of neighborhood?
#108
Posted 22 September 2013 - 10:39 AM
Does anyone know if it would be possible to attach one of those child trailers to these B-cycle bikes? I don't really understand what's involved in attaching one of those to a bicycle. My wife and I live at Museum Place with our 2-year-old, and it would really extend our non-driving range if all three of us could travel by bike. Just not sure how to do that with a toddler.
Thanks,
Richard
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#109
Posted 23 September 2013 - 07:22 AM
Ridglea is probably best termed a second-ring suburb, Arlington Heights being the first-ring in the west side of Fort Worth.
Are those some kind of standardized terms?
Is that due to distance from city-center, or density of neighborhood?
These are pretty standard terms from the Chicago School of urban growth, however there are not really any standard distances or placements applied to them and so they are still fairly subjective and tend to refer mostly to different periods of growth within a given community reaching outward as it grows.
I tend to categorize suburban neighborhoods as one of the following: Classic Suburbs (i.e. "country" homes, homes in Long Island's North Shore aka "the Gold Coast", in Fort Worth think Rivercrest or Westover Hills), Streetcar Suburbs, Post-war Suburbs, Sprawl Suburbs, and Assimilated/Converted Towns.
#111
Posted 23 September 2013 - 09:18 AM
Does anyone know if it would be possible to attach one of those child trailers to these B-cycle bikes? I don't really understand what's involved in attaching one of those to a bicycle. My wife and I live at Museum Place with our 2-year-old, and it would really extend our non-driving range if all three of us could travel by bike. Just not sure how to do that with a toddler.
Thanks,
Richard
I asked the FW Bcycle folks and they said that the design of the Bcycle doens't really lend itself to the pulling of a trailer and as such would not be a permitted usage of the bike. Having ridden the Bcycles a bit, they are quite heavy already due to their robust construction. It would be a LOT to pull a trailer with a kid behind it- they only have three gears. With that being said, I would encourage you to seek out a bike of your own that you could use to pull a trailer. A great an inexpensive source might be the upcoming Bike Swap Meet at Rahr on Oct 13th!
#112
Posted 25 September 2013 - 12:28 PM
I wanted to clarify a little more about the new Trailhead station. It is as I previously stated SE of the new traffic circle. However, it is all the way down the road and directly adjacent to the Trail. This is a nod to the main use of the bike sharing system so far- recreational rides along the trail. That is somewhat different from the usage seen in other cities, but if that is what folks want to use them for, it makes sense to provide convenient stations. I would expect to see another new station coming soon somewhere around University where it crosses the river. That will make it about 2 miles riding from this new Trailhead station.
#113
Posted 25 September 2013 - 01:40 PM
#114
Posted 26 September 2013 - 11:26 AM
Maybe a trailer that attaches to the seat post would be a non-invasive option?
BTW, for kids that can ride a small bike already, this is a great option! I used one of these for my daughter, she loved it.
#115
Posted 26 September 2013 - 12:43 PM
Since my car's been in need of expensive repairs, I've been bicycling to and from my downtown office to my home in southwest FW. Trinity Trails almost all the way (one hour bicycling time each way). The rest and drink stations are certainly welcome in the heat of the afternoon. I just wish that the trail doesn't end so abruptly at the Southwest Boulevard bridge, so I have to pedal down Vickery to my house. But I'm enjoying the fresh air and watching the other bikers and the runners.
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#116
Posted 26 September 2013 - 02:46 PM
Is there no other alternative than Vickery? I have lived in Fort Worth all of my life and I have routes all over town that only use busy streets for a few blocks, at the most. I do realize there are places where there isn't an alternate route off of the busy streets, but I thought I would ask.
#117
Posted 27 September 2013 - 09:05 AM
Once the trail ends at the Southwest Boulevard bridge, you have to pedal uphill north on the frontage road to the railroad track crossing (at the Walmart store). In the West Ridglea neighborhood where I live, you either bike on Vickery or continue north along Southwest Boulevard then take a side street east. Just a tiring and stressful trek facing motor traffic after the leisurely ride on the trails. Incidentally, they need more widely spaced drinking water fountains, especially in the heat of summer. There's a long stretch of the trails east side of the river and south of the Clear Fork station where there's only one fountain (sometimes I don't bring bottle water).
#118
Posted 28 September 2013 - 11:15 PM
I don't ride on Vickery, unless it's right at Southwest Blvd. Sometimes, I will ride on Vickery to get over to the area between 183 and 377. Usually when I'm riding in Ridglea, I will continue on Southwest Blvd., and then take a right on Culver to go through the neighborhood. To me, that's not too much traffic to deal with.
I agree that there should be more water fountains along that stretch of trail.
#119
Posted 22 October 2013 - 06:34 PM
Fort Worth Bike Sharing is celebrating its 6-month anniversary today. More than 7,000 riders have taken 15,000 trips amounting to nearly 60,000 miles and 2.5 million calories burned. Where are all these people going? Here's a heat map visualization of all the trips taken in May!
I'm surprised how many trips were taken on the Trails, which seem to be the most popular place to ride. Trinity Park seems to be the most desirable place to ride a B-bike. It's also really obvious how popular Magnolia street is. I'd be interested to know if bussiness along popular streets and near stations have noticed an uptick in customers.
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#120
Posted 22 October 2013 - 10:54 PM
That's a cool map.
Have to imagine its popularity took a hit during the bridge closure.
-Dylan
#121
Posted 22 October 2013 - 10:58 PM
So, Big Brother comes along for the ride?
#122
Posted 22 October 2013 - 11:05 PM
All the bikes have GPS units to track them in order to keep logistics like this, or in case a bike is stolen.
You can see that effect in the map when bikes go under hwy 30.
#124
Posted 23 October 2013 - 07:54 AM
That's a cool map.
Have to imagine its popularity took a hit during the bridge closure.
The Tilley Bridge between Trinity Park between Forest Park Blvd., just south of Lancaster, connects DT and the W7 area. And waddya know? There's a BCycle station at the west end of the bridge.
#125
Posted 23 October 2013 - 07:55 AM
I can personally attest to the activity on Magnolia. The B-Cycle bikes are always rolling up and down the street. I would not be surprised to see Magnolia getting additional stations in expansions to come.
--
Kara B.
#126
Posted 23 October 2013 - 08:31 AM
So this one's from May? Are there a whole series of these from different months of the year somewhere?
#127
Posted 23 October 2013 - 08:35 AM
This one was actually released several months ago by the B-cycle people. The mayor just happened to post it on her facebook page recently which I think is how it was picked up here. I'm sure the B-cycle folks can get all sorts of graphical reports such as these out of the data the system generates. The data will no doubt be useful for determining where to place additional stations in the future.
#128
Posted 23 October 2013 - 12:38 PM
Have they released similar maps from other months? It'd be interested to see how much things like weather and the 7th bridge being closed altered routes.
#129
Posted 24 October 2013 - 09:05 AM
That's a cool map.
Have to imagine its popularity took a hit during the bridge closure.
The Tilley Bridge between Trinity Park between Forest Park Blvd., just south of Lancaster, connects DT and the W7 area. And waddya know? There's a BCycle station at the west end of the bridge.
Yes, if you're referring to the bike sharing station at Forest Park adjacent to the Trinity Trails. The only other bike sharing station along the Trails on the west bank of the river is at the Trailhead park about 2 miles north of Highway 183. Incidentally, there are three dining/entertainment venues along the west bank of the Trinity south of downtown--one near the River Plaza; one at the Rogers Road bridge; and one at the Trailhead. Obviously pedestrians and bicyclists are welcome.
#130
Posted 24 October 2013 - 03:41 PM
I've heard that Arts Goggle was a big spike in usage, I believe the most yet.
--
Kara B.
#131
Posted 02 January 2014 - 03:30 PM
When the spring comes, I'm back on the Trinity Trails on my bicycle. One thing about bicycling from SW FW to downtown, nearly 9 miles one way, is the wear and tear on your bike (even if it's mostly cement all the way). Flat back tire half-way to downtown causing one to walk the rest of the way is not a pleasant thing, nor the lousy patch that was supposed to keep me going the other way, but didn't! Understand, I'm not an idiot but these things happen. Just wondering why the city doesn't include miniature bike pumps attached to the rentals (Yeah, easy to steal!).
Also, I did some figuring...$8.00 for 24 hours would get me from downtown but only to the Trailhead. If they had a bike sharing station near the Southwest Boulevard bridge area (apartment complex on west side), could hop a bike DT and take it almost all the way home without walking the rest of the way. Still not economically feasible, though.
#132
Posted 02 January 2014 - 03:35 PM
The b-cycle bikes have tubes filled with sealant, and the tires themselves are kevlar belted and quite heavy so punctures should be minimized.
#133
Posted 02 January 2014 - 05:04 PM
I assume that you can contact B-cycle if you get into a jam on one of their bikes. I know I've seen service techs moving bikes around and servicing bikes at the stations. I would imagine those same people are available to bail someone out in the case of a malfunction.
#134
Posted 02 January 2014 - 05:32 PM
JBB is right. There is an 800# printed on the handlebars in case you have any problems.
#135
Posted 22 April 2014 - 04:12 PM
#136
Posted 23 April 2014 - 07:51 AM
And, as a plug: most of their riders are day-trippers (there are, currently, less than 500 annual members). Save money and become an annual member. It's normally $80, but you can find various discounts (I got mine for $65). The day pass only gives you 30 minutes to get from station to station, but the annual membership gives you a full 60 minutes. Or, if you pay $100 (not sure when this one ends), you can get an annual membership and the right to name a bike.
Speaking of naming bikes, I present to you the Herve Villechaise Memorial bike, which I got to name because I was one of the top 10 riders mileage-wise for the year (a feat that was not too hard to achieve):
https://www.flickr.c...in/photostream/
https://www.flickr.c...in/photostream/
My apologies for the links versus the actual photos...I would have to log into my Flickr to grab the links...maybe I'll edit the post this evening to include the actaul photos.
#137
Posted 02 July 2014 - 11:48 AM
I just did the "Tour de Fort Worth" this morning before work. You just have to check into all of the Fort Worth bike stations in one day. Apparently, I'm only the 14th person to have accomplished this feat, which wasn't as hard as I thought it would be (though peddling up Bellaire Dr. from the West is a monster (I saved that and TCU for last)). I just decided to do it before work (took 2.5 hours) and ended up having some fun. The route I took was a little under 19 miles (I did have to backtrack a bit twice to hit some stations that I had missed).
#138
Posted 10 December 2014 - 10:15 AM
Fort Worth Bike Sharing is setting up eight new locations:
http://www.star-tele...-to-launch.html
Hopefully the city can continue inching forward in marking and enforcing bike lanes along city streets so users of this program and other bicycle riders will have a safer place to ride. This could help the program to grow even more in the future.
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#139
Posted 10 December 2014 - 10:47 AM
Dave, the Bellaire Drive South hill is not easy. Congratulations. I'm sorry that I just now caught the part about the hill.
RD, I'm pleased to see the additional locations, and I agree with you about marking more bike lanes on the city streets.
#141
Posted 10 December 2014 - 12:10 PM
Doohickie, you are cruel.
#142
Posted 10 December 2014 - 12:44 PM
#145
Posted 12 May 2015 - 03:38 PM
8 new stations coming soon!
Forest Park & Park Hill
Moncrief Cancer Institute (Magnolia & St. Louis)
Panther Island Pavilion
Trinity Park South
Riverfront Drive (near Woodshed)
Stockyards Station
Texas & Henderson
Trinity Uptown
https://www.facebook...699597403482778
#146
Posted 14 May 2015 - 11:32 AM
I can't recall, or find it with the topic search, is the program self-sustaining, or tax funded, or both?
#147
Posted 14 May 2015 - 03:56 PM
Self-Sustaining plus sponsorships (those ads you see on the bikes). B-cycle receives no direct funding from the City of Fort Worth, although the typically get a break on permitting fees for stations. They receive some Federal Grant money through the T. This is what a lot of the admin time is spent doing, applying for grants.
Unfortunately to date FW B-cycle has been unable to secure a presenting sponsor like Citi in New York or Blue Cross in Minneapolis. This makes the expansion much slower. It's a shame too because what we would need to have a really nice bike share system would be a spreadsheet rounding error for a big company like BNSF or Lockheed.
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#148
Posted 14 May 2015 - 08:12 PM
I'm sure a gas or oil producer would be interested in sponsoring a non-fuel transportation option...
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#149
Posted 14 May 2015 - 09:35 PM
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