Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 19, 2016
Scott Gastel/Gloria Chin, DOT, (212) 839-4850
Dani Simons, Media@motivateco.com, (347) 916-0215
Madeline Kaye, Madeline.Kaye@berlinrosen.com, (646) 200-5297, (646) 369-8226

NYC DOT & Motivate Celebrate #womenwhobike & Inaugurate Protected Bike Lane on 6th Avenue

Women leaders from across the city ride encourage women to bicycle

First built and then removed in 1980, “new” protected bike lane along 6th Avenue marks return of safer cycling from Greenwich Village to Midtown

New York -Transportation (DOT) Commissioner Polly Trottenberg today joined Motivate, the operators of the Citi Bike program, on a bike ride with City officials and local leaders to encourage more women to try cycling. The ride took place along a new protected bike lane on 6th Avenue from Greenwich Village to Chelsea - along the exact same route where Manhattan’s first protected bike lane had been built and then demolished in 1980.

“As an enthusiastic Citi Bike rider, I want women to know that Citi Bike is a safe, affordable, and healthy transit option,” said DOT Commissioner Trottenberg. “With such a big gender gap among cyclists, we believe that bike share and over 1,000 miles of bike lanes around the City will be among the keys to getting more women to ride. Our celebratory ride today -- on a reborn, beautiful 6th Avenue bike lane -- feels completely appropriate; women know better than anybody that most of history’s great ideas were well ahead of their time.”

"One of the most important things we do at the TLC is to stress with all our driver licensees the importance of sharing the road safely with other users in this city of walkers, bike riders and abundant mass transit options," said TLC Commissioner Meera Joshi.  "This protected bike lane, like the others, is Vision Zero at its best, supporting a healthy transportation mode as well as the Citi Bike program and keeping up with the increasing number of women who bike as a part of their daily lives."

“Citi Bike is a busy woman’s secret weapon,” said Dani Simons, Director of External Affairs for Motivate, the operator of Citi Bike. “One key lets you get to work, run errands, or meet up with friends. A Citi Bike membership eases you into biking with a community of people ready to help. And with the addition of more safe, protected bike lanes around the City there’s never been a better time to get riding. ”

This effort is part of the City’s commitment to expanding the use of green and equitable transportation modes including doubling the number of cyclists in the five boroughs by 2020. Citi Bike is playing a significant role in meeting this goal; the program is currently serving over 60,000 trips per day on a regular basis, putting the program on par with the number of daily commuters who use the Staten Island Ferry or Boro Taxis.

The new 6th Avenue protected lane now stretches from 8th Street to 33rd Street. In 1980, at the direction of Mayor Edward Koch, DOT installed Manhattan’s first protected bike lane on the exact same segment of 6th Avenue; after community uproar and protest, the lanes were ripped out six months later. The lane on 6th Avenue was re-installed this year after a process of thorough community engagement and support.

The 6th Avenue lane will be among almost 20 miles of protected bike lanes that will be installed Citywide this year, a new record. Protected bike lanes have been shown to reduce injuries and also attract more women to ride. Safe protected bike infrastructure and Citi Bike together provide powerful new tools to attract people new people - especially women - to consider bicycling as a way to get around the city. Studies conducted by Hunter College and NYU Rudin Center have shown that while the majority of riders are men, women have been slowly closing the gender gap and are more likely to ride and to use Citi Bike in areas with fewer lanes of traffic, more limited truck traffic, and fewer collision-based cyclist injuries. The National Association of City Transportation Officials substantiates these findings with its own study indicating that adding protected bike lanes significantly increases bike ridership on those streets.

“CitiBike and our city’s growing bike-friendly infrastructure are for everyone,” said Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer. “It’s encouraging to see the cycling gender gap closing, and I encourage all New Yorkers, regardless of gender, age, or background to make use of this wonderful, flexible, sustainable transit option in our increasingly bike-friendly city.”

State Senator Brad Hoylman said: "As someone who routinely uses Citibike to get around my senate district, I'm elated at the new dedicated bike lane along 6th Avenue. I'm also thrilled to support the #WomenWhoBike ride and thank Mayor de Blasio and DOT Commissioner Trottenberg for their efforts to make biking more inclusive for all New Yorkers."

 "Citibike has been a great addition to our active transportation network, making it even easier to get between transit stops or navigating parts of New York City,” said State Assembly Member Nila Rozic. “During this first Women's Bike Month, I hope that this transportation option will continue to be embraced by women of all ages, whether we are seeking a more healthy, active lifestyle, an eco-friendly commute, or wanting to familiarize ourselves with the expansion of the City's protected bike lanes."

“Citi Bike is a great way to get around our city, and with this new dedicated bike lane on Sixth Avenue, cyclists will be able to ride uptown from Greenwich Village in my Council District to Midtown easier than ever before,” said Council Member Margaret S. Chin. “I encourage women to take advantage of this healthy transit option and join the thousands of New Yorkers who are utilizing our city’s growing network of protected bike lanes to commute to work, or just for the pleasure of experiencing our beautiful neighborhoods from a bicycle.”

“As new protected bike lanes continue to emerge and with Citi Bike stations growing in number, we are seeing more and more women biking to work and for recreation. Biking is a fantastic way to get around the city, and I am very proud to be among the #womenwhobike”, said Councilwoman Helen Rosenthal (D6) Co-Chair of the Women’s Caucus.

“Women make it happen and are endlessly on the go. Before last year I had never ridden a bike on a New York City street. I finally confronted my fears of the streets and got my Citi Bike membership,” said Tracey Capers, EVP Programs/Organizational Development Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation. “Biking has become my best commute - allowing me to decompress from the day or think in open air while also connecting with friends and colleagues, running errands, getting in my exercise.”

“Protected bike lanes are inviting to all cyclists, but especially to women who, studies have shown, are more apt to ride in lanes that physically separate them from the hazards of vehicular traffic. After years of advocacy for more protected bike lanes, I am pleased to ride on another expansion of the protected bike lane network,” says Veronica Vanterpool, executive director of Tri-State Transportation Campaign.  

“When you see lots of women riding, you know you’re doing something right,” said Kate Fillin-Yeh of the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO).  “New York City’s commitment to building a protected bike lane network and delivering a large-scale, convenience-based bike share system is key to getting more people on bikes and making streets safer for everyone."

"When they City builds safer infrastructure for biking and walking, that ensures more equitable access to the streets for all New Yorkers," said Caroline Samponaro, Deputy Director of Transportation Alternatives. "Our research finds that twice as many women are riding in protected bike lanes on redesigned streets like Manhattan's Eighth
and Ninth avenues, compared to the unprotected lanes we see on streets like Fifth Avenue. With a continued investment in Citi Bike and protected bike lanes, we will see the number of women riding continue to grow, which is a great thing for the city's transportation network."

“Women on bikes are the gateway to all people and demographics on bikes. Unlock this level to win this round and level up!,” said Evo Cho of WE Bike NYC and Leader of Moms on Wheels. She went on to say, “Moms will not ride with their precious live cargo if there is no confidence. Infrastructure that calms traffic and forces the unpredictable to be predictable lends confidence. (It's all about confidence.)”

“We now have a firm foundation to service and promote female bike ridership with unprecedented confidence due, in part, to the city of New York's commitment to the creation of protected bike lanes, enforcement of safe street policies, access to Citi Bike's expanding fleet, and exposure of independent bicycle programs like Get Women Cycling,” said Angela Azzolino, Program Creator & Executive Director, Get Women Cycling. “We are thrilled to participate in today's celebration of #womenwhobike and the sixth avenue protected bike lane inauguration.”

Motivate, the operator of Citi Bike, is hosting its first Women’s Bike Month - #womenwhobike - to celebrate the women in bike share and encourage more women to give this rapidly growing and popular transportation option a try.

Throughout October, Citi Bike will be profiling female cyclists, tips for getting going on a bike, and highlighting women-centric biking events around the City, as well as a number of exciting promos. A complete list of events can be found here: http://try.citibikenyc.com/womenwhobike/

About Citi Bike
The Citi Bike program is New York’s bike share system. It will have 10,000 bikes at over 600 stations by the end of 2016. Stations are located in Manhattan below 86th Street and in the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Downtown Brooklyn, DUMBO, Brooklyn Heights, Fort Greene, Clinton Hill. Bedford-Stuyvesant, Williamsburg, and Greenpoint and in Long Island City, Queens, with stations located every few blocks, and the program is expanding this year-into Harlem, Park Slope, Boerum Hill, Cobble Hill, Carroll Gardens, Gowanus and Red Hook. Annual members receive an electronic key to undock a bike from any station, allowing unlimited trips up to 45 minutes without incurring any additional costs. Twenty-four-hour passes are available for purchase at any Citi Bike station or through the Citi Bike app and provide unlimited 30-minute trips. Reduced cost memberships are available for NYCHA residents and members of select credit unions throughout the city, and for IDNYC holders in their first year of membership. 
For more information: www.citibikenyc.com or http://try.citibikenyc.com/womenwhobike/

About Motivate
Motivate is a global leader in bike share. A full-service bike share operator and technology innovator, Motivate works to re-envision how people experience and move around cities.  Motivate currently manages all of the largest bike share systems in the United States and many of the largest systems in the world, including Bay Area Bike Share (California Bay Area), Citi Bike (New York and Jersey City), Divvy (Chicago), CoGo Bike Share (Columbus, Ohio), Capital Bike Share (Washington, D.C.; Arlington and Alexandria, Va.; and Montgomery County, Md.), Hubway (Boston, Somerville, Cambridge and Brookline, Mass.), Pronto (Seattle), Bike Chattanooga (Tenn.), Bike Share Toronto and Melbourne Bike Share in Australia as well as Bay Area Bike Share. Motivate recently launched the new BIKETOWN bike share system in Portland, Oregon.

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Studies Referenced:

Bike Lanes + Bike Share Program = Bike Safety, Hunter College 2014
Cycling Study January 2014 (pdf)

Citi Bike and Gender, NYU Rudin Center for Transportation 2014
Citi Bike and Gender website

Equitable Bike Share Means Building Better Places For People To Ride NACTO 2016
See more at Nacto.org/

 

Citi Bike logo -operated by Motivate NYC DOT logo

 

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