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The only times I've used a bike share, it was because I was walking somewhere and happened to pass a dockless bike that seemed like a really good idea to just r

The only times I've used a bike share, it was because I was walking somewhere and happened to pass a dockless bike that seemed like a really good idea to just rent and use right away. These were invariable in places that would not have had a docking station.

kasey_junk 8y ago
I get that. But he mentioned that dockless made it feasible for replacing the commute. Those seem like the kinds of trips that dock based systems excel at because they are known routes.
- sagichmal 8y ago
  The closest city bike docking stations are a ~10 minute walk from my apartment, and a ~5 minute walk from my office. There is always a dockless bike within a ~5 minute walk from my apartment, even during morning and evening rush hours, and I can leave it directly in front of my office door. The time spent on the bike is the same in both cases, about 10 or 12 minutes. So a docked bike commute is 25 minutes door-to-door, with a lot of time kind of "wasted", whereas a dockless bike commute is between 10 and 15, and all of the time spent feels like I'm making progress toward my goal. It's worth noting that taking public transit (Muni bus) between these same two points takes at least 30 minutes (good day, light traffic, no mentally disturbed people interrupting the driver) and has taken as long as 55 minutes. A Lyft is also reliably slower, especially in the evening rush hour. To be honest, the time taken is not such a huge deal. The bigger draw, by far, is that riding the electric bike is completely effortless, and usually quite fun. And it's also important that they are extremely handsome, I don't feel like a goober when I'm on them. Riding the city bikes, in comparison, is a completely different experience. You feel how big and heavy they are, you can easily work up a sweat, and they're not handsome machines, everyone looks a little bit like a doofus on them.

kasey_junk 8y ago

I get that. But he mentioned that dockless made it feasible for replacing the commute. Those seem like the kinds of trips that dock based systems excel at because they are known routes.

sagichmal 8y ago
The closest city bike docking stations are a ~10 minute walk from my apartment, and a ~5 minute walk from my office. There is always a dockless bike within a ~5 minute walk from my apartment, even during morning and evening rush hours, and I can leave it directly in front of my office door. The time spent on the bike is the same in both cases, about 10 or 12 minutes. So a docked bike commute is 25 minutes door-to-door, with a lot of time kind of "wasted", whereas a dockless bike commute is between 10 and 15, and all of the time spent feels like I'm making progress toward my goal. It's worth noting that taking public transit (Muni bus) between these same two points takes at least 30 minutes (good day, light traffic, no mentally disturbed people interrupting the driver) and has taken as long as 55 minutes. A Lyft is also reliably slower, especially in the evening rush hour. To be honest, the time taken is not such a huge deal. The bigger draw, by far, is that riding the electric bike is completely effortless, and usually quite fun. And it's also important that they are extremely handsome, I don't feel like a goober when I'm on them. Riding the city bikes, in comparison, is a completely different experience. You feel how big and heavy they are, you can easily work up a sweat, and they're not handsome machines, everyone looks a little bit like a doofus on them.