FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 14, 2011

ALTA BICYCLE SHARE SELECTED TO LAUNCH NEW YORK CITY BIKE SHARE, PLANNED AS ONE OF THE WORLD’S LARGEST SYSTEMS

With operations already in D.C., Boston and Melbourne,

Alta Bicycle Share continues its global leadership in bike sharing.

10,000 bikes planned for launch, Summer 2012.

New York, NY - New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan and Deputy Mayor Howard Wolfson today announced the selection of Alta Bicycle Share, Inc. to develop and operate a privately funded bike share system in New York City, the first step in the process of bringing a low-cost and accessible 24-hour transportation option to New Yorkers. The New York City bike share system will launch in 2012, and will include approximately 10,000 bicycles, distributed at 600 stations in Manhattan south of 79th Street, as well as in Brooklyn neighborhoods from Williamsburg, Crown Heights and Bedford-Stuyvesant to Park Slope and Carroll Gardens. Options for additional stations in other boroughs are also being explored.

Bike share will offer New Yorkers a new public transportation option for short, one-way trips. The system will fill gaps in the transit system with a network of durable bikes available at self-service stations located every few blocks. New Yorkers and visitors can pick up a bike at any station, ride to their destination and drop off the bike at the nearest available station. Bikes will be available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. In addition, smartphone apps will make use of the system’s wireless technology, allowing users to find out about bike and station availability in real-time.

Alta Bicycle Share estimates that more than 200 jobs will be created by locally sourcing maintenance and support for the system. Alta Bicycle Share will be responsible for all system operations, including installation, maintenance, repairs, cleaning and customer support. New York City’s bike share stations will be solar-powered; no roadwork will be required for installation.

“We could not be more excited to bring our successful bike share system to New York City,” said Alison Cohen, President of Alta Bicycle Share. “Bike share is a new form of public transportation that will help connect New Yorkers to their own neighborhoods, to other neighborhoods and to public transit. At the same time, it will make New York City a healthier, cleaner, greener and safer place. Alta Bicycle Share is elated to help make this happen.”

Alta Bicycle Share anticipates that sponsorship will be a key component of the system financing and this announcement also kicks off the process of selecting a system sponsor. Additional information for interested potential sponsors is available at: www.nycbikesharesponsorship.com.

Membership in New York’s bike share system will be affordable, with an annual membership costing less than a monthly unlimited-ride MetroCard. Day and weekly memberships will also be available. Membership entitles the user to an unlimited number of free 30-45 minute trips. For longer trips, users will be charged a small, graduated usage fee. Exact rates will be determined after a contract is finalized.

“With bike share, we’re reinventing the wheel by providing an affordable transportation option that’s there when you want it,” said Commissioner Sadik-Khan. “Whether it’s covering the last quarter mile from the subway or reaching that dead zone between stations, bike share offers a great, new way to get around in a New York minute and will bring needed jobs and revenue to the city.”

Alta Bicycle Share’s selection as the system operator also marks the beginning of an extensive community outreach process to craft a system that meets New York City’s unique transportation needs. Working closely with local organizations, property owners, other stakeholders and Community Boards, Alta Bicycle Share and DOT will host demonstration events, open houses and workshops throughout the city. New Yorkers are encouraged to attend to test out bike share bikes and provide feedback on how bike share will work best for them. In addition, DOT is launching an online Web portal where New Yorkers can find information about upcoming events, offer suggestions and receive instant updates. Information about the upcoming community engagement process, as well as Key Facts and FAQs are available at: http://www.NYCityBikeshare.com and www.nyc.gov/bikeshare.

Other facts about bike share:

• Bike share is a great transportation option for short trips that are too far to walk but too short for a cab or subway ride.
• New Yorkers make many short trips that could easily made by bike:
  • 40% of all trips are under one mile
  • 54% of all trips are under two miles
  • 67% of all trips are under three miles
• Bike share improves access to the subway, leveraging the City’s investment in transit and bike networks
• The program would allow New Yorkers access to bikes without worrying about bike parking, bike storage or theft.
• In advance of the system’s launch, New Yorkers will have many chances to test out the bikes and equipment at public demonstrations and to provide their input on station location.
• New York City’s streets are the safest in recorded history. Driver and pedestrian injury rates have fallen. Cycling injury and fatality rates have fallen or remained flat at the same time as the number of cyclists has more than doubled.
• Alta Bicycle Share operates systems in Washington, D.C., Boston and Melbourne. The bike share bikes and equipment that will be used in New York City is also in use in London, Montreal, Toronto, and Minneapolis, as well as in Alta Bicycle Share’s systems in Washington, D.C., Boston and Melbourne.

Alta Bicycle Share designs, deploys, and manages bike sharing systems globally. Current programs include New Balance Hubway in Boston, MA; Capital Bikeshare in Washington, D.C./Arlington, VA; and Melbourne Bike Share in Australia. Public Bike System Company (PBSC or “Bixi”) is Alta’s exclusive supplier of bikes and equipment in the U.S. Alta Bicycle Share is also working closely with Alta Planning + Design on bike share feasibility studies for Providence, RI, Seattle, WA, and Jackson Hole, WY.

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Contact

For additional information, please visit http://www.NYCityBikeshare.com or email nycmedia@altabicycleshare.com.