Thursday Morning Commute - Vacation

I'll be in Florida where I'll watch a shuttle launch and a wedding (but not that wedding) so blogging will be light for a few days

• A full CaBi rack led one family to bring a bike in for a sleepover.
• DCBAC has some suggestions about how to keep CaBi desireable when it's no longer cool. Maybe it will be like Bob Dylan and always be cool. 
• And DCBAC links to this article in the Atlantic about Capital Bikeshare.

Comments

[Michael H.]

I can't say that I've ever ridden a CaBi bike merely to "look cool." I ride the bikes because it's convenient (one-way trips, no need to worry about locking up my own bike, no need to worry about bringing my own bike into an office, etc.). That won't change next year or the year after.

Well, I guess the Winter Weather Warrior contest wasn't so much about convenience as it was about competition. If they keep running that contest every winter, I think I'll continue to participate. Mostly because of the competition. (The prizes are OK but not really life-changing.)

Novelty plays a small part in my motivation to use CaBi. There are so many visitors to the area and acquaintances who are still not familiar with CaBi that there is an ongoing novelty in explaining and showing the system to "new" people.

I think the nature of the D.C. area (large tourist industry, many new short-term residents) will extend the novelty factor for quite a while. There will always be many people who will be "new" to CaBi.

But it will be the convenience factors that will sustain widespread interest in CaBi. People will still be commuting to work or school and running errands next year. They will still be doing the "tourist thing". I don't think interest in CaBi is going to wane. I don't think that many people are using it because it's "cool" and new. Most of those who are attracted by the novelty are probably realizing that it's pretty darned convenient. As long as they continue to work on adding stations, docks and bikes to high-demand areas and improving bike rebalancing, the system should be in good shape in the future.

[Blue-eyed Devil]

There are, arguably, quite a few chinks in Dylan's armor of cool.

Just sayin'...

[SJE]

I met three young GW students at the end of the CCT yesterday, riding CaBi's. They had ridden from GW all the way, sp I directed them to the Silver Spring metro so they could get back before the storm hit.

They "hadn't intended to go that far" but were obviously having such a good time that they kept going. Thats a good plug for bikes and CaBi.

[jeff]

I keep wondering how much longer cupcakes can be cool, but they too only seem to get more popular.

[Contrarian]

I'm worried less about the cool factor and more about upkeep. A system like this requires a lot of maintenance. If it's not maintained it becomes unreliable, and if it's unreliable it becomes a lot useful. As long as the people responsible for upkeep -- and those responsible for paying for it -- keep up their enthusiasm I don't think we'll have to worry about riders.

[Dave]

I look like a complete dork on a CaBi. Of course I look like a dork no matter what I'm riding, fortunately that isn't the point. I don't think anyone could be accused of looking cool on CaBi.

[oboe]

Riding a CaBi bike will always be "cooler" than hailing a cross-town ride from a right-wing racist cabbie from Maryland, whose driving a stinking falling-apart hoopdy.