This has been a week of ups and downs regarding bike share as Bay Wheels, owned by Lyft, has announced changes to its programs that will impact community members, especially low income members.

When Bay Area Bike Share first piloted in 2013 with public money, there were a number of issues. We found that the people using the system were not representative of Silicon Valley and the Bay Area as a whole. The users skewed white, male, and wealthy.

When a private company (Motivate) offered to take over the system and fund it (then called Ford GoBike), SVBC along with other Bay Area bike coalitions and Transform, advocated for a suite of initiatives to benefit low-income residents called Bike Share For All. This program includes a low-income membership option of $5/year in the first year and $5/month after the first year, opportunities to pay in cash and sign up in person, first 60 minutes of the ride free (instead of the standard 45 minutes), and dedicated funding to do outreach in low income communities. Eligibility for this program is based on whether a person is eligible for CalFresh, PG&E Cares, or SFMTA’s Lifeline program.

In the first year, SVBC worked with the City and communities around San José to sign up 624 low-income members, which represent 76% of all San José bike share members! A Bike Share For All members, Heriberto Amaral, who is also a student at San José State University said of the program, “I now have a deeper understanding of how transportation systems impact urban planning and environment. Bike Share for All program is critically important to providing a transportation solution that’s accessible for those with limited income. Personally I now prefer public transportation, I don’t see the need of having a car when I can ride a bike.”

Meanwhile, Lyft acquired Motivate and turned FordGoBike into Bay Wheels. SVBC has been coordinating with Lyft and the City of San José to make the system the best it can be in San José while providing equal access to people of all incomes. This past year has seen the debut of dockless e-bikes that reach more geographies around the city as well as additional rides and workshops supported by Lyft.

This past week, Lyft announced two changes to the program that could impact access to the system, however they are now revising those announcements, due to response from SVBC, the City of San José, and other regional stakeholders.

Lyft initially announced that they were removing the option to pay in cash and shifting to the use of prepaid cards for those individuals without debit or credit cards. While allowing prepaid cards is a good step, the cash payment option is essential to ensure access to all people who would like to use the Bay Wheels bike share service. Removing this option would close a door for people who don’t have credit or debit cards or aren’t able to use prepaid cards. On December 19, due to feedback from SVBC and other groups, Lyft has announced that “We will continue to temporarily support in-person cash payments for bikeshare memberships while we explore other payment options, which will supplement loading cash value onto prepaid cards.” Thank you Lyft for recognizing the importance of accommodating all users. We will continue working with city and organizational partners to find solutions and locations to pay for bike share rides in cash.

Lyft also announced the addition of a per minute fee to e-bike trips starting March 1, 2020, on top of an individual’s annual or monthly membership, including Bike Share for All memberships. This is problematic because e-bikes serve areas where docks don’t exist, like East San José. People who want to use bike share in those areas are forced to use e-bikes and thus could be forced to pay more for that service. For those with low income memberships, that additional cost could be prohibitive, removing the option of bike share. After conversations with the City of San José and SVBC, Lyft is now evaluating the best approach to e-bike pricing that will take into account Bike Share For All memberships as well as access in neighborhoods that don’t have docking stations. We understand that e-bikes have higher operational costs, however, we need to find a way to keep the cost of riding e-bikes low for people with limited budgets.

Finally, we want to work with Lyft to expand eligibility for low-income membership. In our work with local communities and groups, we have found that the current qualifiers still exclude people who could utilize bike share but aren’t eligible for one of these programs. We would like to see Lyft expand eligibility so that more people who could use the program are able to access it.

Thank you to Lyft for being responsive to the community’s concerns and interests. The City of San José remains a strong partner in making sure the Bay Wheels bike share system serves all residents, regardless of income. We will continue working together to achieve these goals.