By Jason Islas
Lookout Staff

July 22, 2011 – Alternative transportation will get a boost when the Expo Light Rail hits town in the next few years. But it might not be the only new, green way to get around.

Bike advocates told a crowd of residents at the Civic Auditorium Wednesday that bike share – an easy way to rent bicycles at Expo stations and elsewhere to do quick errands around town – might be in the City's future. They sponsored the gathering to guage community support for the idea.

A sample B-Cycle kiosk from the Boulder, Colorado bike share system. Patrons can access the bikes with credit card or with a membership card. Photo by Jason Islas.

Santa Monica's commitment to sustainability makes it “the ideal city for bike share,” said Gina Goodhill, a policy and legislative associate with Global Green USA, which helped organize the meeting.

With the coming of the Expo Line, LA Metro has given preliminary project recommendation to Santa Monica for a proposed bike share program, said Deputy Director for Special Plans Lucy Dyke.

“We definitely don't have cash in hand,” Dyke told The Lookout Thursday. But she said that the City hopes to receive $1.5 million from LA Metro. If the project is approved, the City will have to pony up an additional $.9 million to pay for bike share.

Dyke said that LA Metro won't decide for sure until September and after that, the City will still be responsible for meeting certain criteria to assure funding.

The money won't come until 2016, to coincide with the arrival of the Expo line, due to hit town in 2015.

But some want to see bike share in Santa Monica much sooner.

“For me, the only question is when,” said Parks and Recreation Commissioner Richard McKinnon, who said that mid-2012 would be a good goal. That sentiment was echoed by several members of the audience.

Some wanted to make sure that private bike parking be given priority over bike share infrastructure.

Kent Strumpell, a local bicycle advocate, said that parking for privately-owned bikes needs to remain visible and secure. But, with that in mind, he affirmed his support for a bike share program.

Lee James, a representative of B-Cycle was present at the meeting to discuss some successful bike share models from around the country.

B-Cycle has provided the infrastructure for bike share programs in Boulder, Denver, Chicago, Honolulu and other cities around the country.

Alta Planning and Design planner Andrea Garland spoke about Alta's success in establishing a regional bike share that covers Washington, D.C. and Arlington, as well as a new program in Boston.

Both emphasized the importance of having strong political support as a precursor to any bike share program that might come to Santa Monica.

“The meeting was about getting more people aware of bike sharing,” Dyke explained. The City can then decide if bike share should be given a high priority in the Bike Action Plan, she said.

This be the first of many meetings, said Goodhill. She and her organization have been advocating for a bike share program in Santa Monica for some time. “There seems like there's a high level of support” from the community, she said.

Garland echoed her sentiment, adding, “If more people have bikes available, they would ride.”