Red Bike, a station-based nonprofit bike share program with stations in Cincinnati, has temporarily closed its services.
Public transport by bicycle profitable The option closed its services in January. 12, citing the need to repair equipment, lay off employees and restructure their business before spring.
Douglas McClintock, the executive director of Red Bike, hopes to reopen the bikeshare service in mid-April. Currently, however, it is not certain whether this is feasible.
“It’s a moving target, we don’t really have a definitive date,” McClintock said.
2023 was Red Bike’s most successful year in its 10 years of service, with more than 140,000 rides. However, 36% of those trips are made by those in its GO program, an income-qualified discount that offers riders a $5 monthly subscription.
The money earned from the sale of passes currently cannot cover the cost of operation, and would need substantially more passes to be sold to come close.
“If you are a pass holder or use the service, become a monthly or annual member or whatever works for you. When we return to service, it will be critical for us to ensure that we can provide a good service and that we are well funded in that area” , McClintock said.
Red Bike relies heavily on sponsorships to allow it to operate. The bike share program lost its presenting sponsor, UC Health, last summer. UC Health decided not to renew its contract with Red Bike, which was its biggest source of income.
According to McClintock, the service is very cautious about its expenses.
“We’re really trying to keep the people we’ve hired and continue to figure out how we can get what we need to do with a skeleton crew. It looks like we’ll have a little more clarity on our return date before we start getting the people and hiring new people,” McClintock said.
McClintock says that transit is a right, and that, compared to other competing cities, it is important that the people of Cincinnati have access to micro-mobility.
“If we lose that in our community, we lose a tool that can enable people to live car-free or car-free, especially students, in a big way,” McClintock said.
Cincinnati has a variety of discounted public transportation options available, such as the $4 Metro day pass and the free to use Cincy Streetcar, but those are limited to set routes. The Red Bike offers a cheap and healthy alternative to public transportation, as well as a pleasant way to explore the city of Cincinnati freely.
McClintock is calling for advocacy from his community to reach out to community leaders who may have the financial means to support Red Bike. Public funding is crucial to ensuring long-term transit for Cincinnati.
“We need people to speak up and say this is important to us and we want to see what happens,” McClintock said.
