By Daniel Larios
Staff Writer

November 13, 2014 -- The Santa Monica City Council unanimously approved a $10.4 million contract with Miami Beach-based company CycleHop to create a 500-unit bike share program for the bayside city, the first of its kind in Los Angeles County.

Moved by Councilmember Kevin McKeown and seconded by Councilmember Gleam Davis, the motion also included a “robust public engagement” process which would gauge the level of interest for a bike station in different areas of the city.

Bikeshare programs allow pedestrians to rent “Smart-Bikes” from one station and drop them off at any other station in the city, similar to how rental cars work.

The “Smart-Bikes” have integrated systems that are capable of accepting payments and releasing the bike locks via a web-based software, according to City staff.  Bikes are chainless and have automatic lights for nighttime travel.

People who are not registered can sign up online; at one of 20 outdoor pay kiosks at the larger, more central stations, or at bikeshare partners including the Bike Center, City transit store and other local businesses.  

Once registered, users can rent bikes by going to a specific unit.  If a customer returns to find no bikeshare rack available, the bicycle can be locked up nearby. System operators can locate the bike through its GPS and retrieve it to stock stations running low on units.

Personal bicycles would be prohibited from using official Bikeshare racks, since bicycle racks are available across the city.

The program would include 75 stations, all on public property, where riders could pay $2 for every 20 minutes of use or buy memberships ranging from $15 to $25 per month. Estimated rider fees would add up to $1.26 million a year, according to City staff.

In addition to membership-based funding for the program, the City would also solicit bids from corporate sponsors that would pay in the range from $250,000 to $500,000 a year to place logos and messages on the bikes.  Funding from grants would also kick in about $2 million.

The proposal was met with mostly positive feedback from the 15 individuals who testified during the council item’s public comment section.

“We’re thrilled to support the city staff’s recommendation to move forward now with the proposed bike sharing program,” said Carl Hansen, director of government affairs for the Chamber of Commerce.  “Santa Monica has a history of being a leader in the adoption of environmentally progressive policy.  Other cities have often looked to us for best practices, and we should seize the opportunity to once again take the lead in our region with bike sharing.”

But some of the speakers worried about CycleHop’s track record launching similar programs in other cities and the use of corporate sponsorships to help pay for the program.

“I fully support the goals of the proposed bike share program and the choice of CycleHop as the operator,” said former mayor Mike Feinstein. “However, I have strong concerns about the corporate advertising/sponsorship funding mechanism.

I believe you should condition your approval tonight upon giving staff direction to lobby for (funding alternatives) to come from cap and trade funds, where there is a clear nexus with fossil fuel use and to come from future tax increment zones along rail corridors,” he added.

While most of the speakers supported a bike share program, some took issue with the proposed vendor, which has experienced delays in its bike sharing programs in Orlando, Pheonix, Tampa and Ottowa.

“CycleHop has yet to launch successfully in any city,” said Ann Waller, who supports a bike share plan in Santa Monica. “By all reports delays are ongoing, a search of positive user reviews or testimonials appears non-existent.

“Additionally, the product being considered is an unproven prototype,” Waller said. “At a cost of $2,200 per bike and an overall commitment of $10.4 million, I ask, is it prudent for Santa Monica to adopt an early adapter mentality on the taxpayer’s dime?”

“To me, it sounds like we’re funding the growth of a business with zero success rate,” said Laura Wilson, who also supports a bike sharing program but is hesitant about the involvement of CycleHop. “A solution would be … start smaller.  Bring in the model that they have in Salt Lake City.”

Wilson referred to the GREENbike program, which is a partnership of public and private investment that costs the city $500,000 for a 10-station, 55-unit program, which has grown to a 20-station, 160-unit program.

Before the meeting, CycleHop had demo bikes in front of City Hall for testing, an experience that Councilmember McKeown shared from the dais.

“I did ride one of these bikes and if anybody was on Main Street and saw a green bicycle with a big guy with a big grin, that was me,” said McKeown, who has experienced eight to ten different bike share programs all around the world. “I found the bikes to be as good as any other I’ve ridden in a bike sharing program.

“The question is, ‘will people ride them?’ and I hear some skepticism from residents,” he added.  “Well, in every community where they’ve done this, what they’ve learned is that if you don’t start with a certain number of critical mass, you don’t create the kind of availability and convenience that entices people to ride them.”

The program is expected to be up and running before the new Expo Light Rail Line -- which will connect Los Angeles with Santa Monica -- is scheduled to be completed next year, according to City staff.

City officials estimated that 370,000 trips would be taken on the bikes each year.