A month after its debut, Gainesville’s bike share program has stirred little interest within the community.
Go Gainesville, which launched May 6, allows people to rent a bicycle with the use of an app and swipe of a credit or debit card.
Following its first month of operation, Go Gainesville averages two bicycle rentals per day with each bike ride lasting about 45 minutes.
“With very little marketing and the decreased population here in Gainesville over the summertime, we are very happy with that two rentals per day,” said Chip Skinner, the marketing and communications supervisor for Gainesville’s Regional Transit System and Public Works.
Gainesville partnered with Zagster, which is a company that provides bike sharing to communities, to offer a bike share program with stations at Bo Diddley Plaza and near Southwest Sixth Street and Second Avenue.
Skinner said that the program cost about $35,000, with each location equipped with eight beach cruiser bicycles.
Through Zagster, people can rent bikes at a $3 per hour rate, or purchase a monthly or annual membership at $15 and $25, respectively.
The number of daily bike rentals peaked at 58 for the month of May, with 39 percent of users being repeat riders.
“It’s been minor increments every day,” Skinner said.
Fourteen people have signed up for an annual membership, and five people have signed up for a monthly membership, he said.
Once advertising is expanded and students return for the fall semester, Skinner said he anticipates the use of the program will spike.
Lakeland, a city with a population similar to Gainesville, also implemented a bike sharing program by partnering with Zagster.
Swan City Cycles, which is the Lakeland bike share program, debuted in December with seven stations and 35 bicycles, said Julie Townsend, the executive director Lakeland Downtown Development Authority.
Townsend said that the city would like Swan City Cycles to reach a goal of 1,000 users by December.
After nearly seven months of operation, Townsend said that Swan City Cycles has reached about 640 users. Bicycle rentals average about 3 or 4 per weekday and about 5 or 6 on weekend days.
“We didn’t know what to expect," she said. "It could have been something that the public rejected, but they seem to have embraced it.”
Townsend said that mostly casual bike riders use the bike share program, and about 70 percent of users hold a membership.
“I think it’s just the novelty of it," she said. “I think people who are riding for the most part don’t own their own bike.”
Gainesville, however, is the home to many experienced bicyclists.
Skinner, an avid cyclist himself, said that the cruiser-styled bikes offered at each Go Gainesville location may not appeal to experienced bike riders because they lack bells and whistles.
“When they come downtown, and they are looking to just kind of cruise around and get from point A to point B it is a valuable option for them,” Skinner said.
Although it's hard to speculate on the program's future, Skinner said he thinks the program’s popularity will continue grow.
“The interconnectivity we have with bicyclists, in particular, is very great here,” he said. “The more people who move into town and are using bikes, the more that system is going to continue to expand.”