Would you rather participate in a bike-share program (like Citi Bike in NYC or Hubway in Boston) rather than own your own bike?

Bikes are relatively inexpensive. I’d rather own my own. I wouldn’t want to share a bike with a thousand other butts. That’s just me though, perhaps I’m weird. lol

I like my bike & i’m not sharing with some Fat Bottomed Girls, besides, those bikes are very ugly & don’t suit my cycling needs…like style for one.

And that is why @ucme has a pink bike. It’s very stylish.

I’d rather buy own. You can get a decent bike for pretty cheap, and bike maintenance is way cheaper than cars, for example. Also, looking at citi bike, it seems pretty expensive. I know it’s different in a place like nyc, but where I live in the midwest where cities can be quite sprawling I might need 30 minutes to just get from point A to point B. It would be cheaper for me to own unless I was riding very sparingly.

I don’t live in a bikeable city, so this is somewhat of a moot point for me.

But on a theoretical basis – I would rather own my own. Why? Because on my own bike, I can set the handlebars at the pitch and height that I prefer – then they are always set, and I don’t need to monkey around with them.

Same with seat height and angle. Yes, these can be adjusted on the rental bikes, but why make the effort?

But probably the main reason for keeping my own bike is that I would be familiar with the brakes (and their feel), and the turning radius, and the balance and all of the little things that a rider needs to keep in mind.

As an avid cyclist, I own a few bikes. But the advantage of the bike share program is that I wouldn’t have to take a bike on the train when I commute. And I won’t have to hassle with parking it for the day and worrying about it being stolen.

A colleague in NY that lives on Long Island has bee taking the Long Island Railroad to Jamaica Station every morning, and then riding a bike share bike into lower Manhattan. He gets about 5 miles of riding every morning, and he rides another bike about 3 miles north in the afternoon to get home. He has lost weight this summer and feels much better at work.

Yes, I can see people wanting their own bike. But the people who would prefer that: are you riding a bike today? Will you if bike share comes to your neighborhood? Why not?

@Katniss Got Barbie written on the frame as well.

I’d rather own my own. These shared bikes are awkward and heavy and hard to pedal.

I like the Boston plan. We don’t have much space here, and if I had a bike or bikes for my wife and myself to ride, I’d likely have to store them in the basement, which would be a big hassle.

I’ve seen the bikes in London;s bike scheme and they look like they weigh half a ton each. I’d rather own my own. But since I’m not able to cycle on the roads anyway, it’s a moot point for me.

I don’t know how it’s setup in other city’s, but in Chicago bike stations are located at most train stops, so if your taking public transit you will have the option to take a bike to a location that would normally take a couple train/bus transfers.

@ucme Does it have those cute little ribbon thingies hanging off the handle bars too?

@Katniss Uh huh & those ever so important training wheels…ride safely kids!!