Bike Sharing Program Leaves UCSB
by Edhat StaffHOPR Bikes (contributed photo)
By edhat staff
The HOPR Bike Share company has ended its contract with UC Santa Barbara and plans to leave by spring break, reports The Daily Nexus.
UC Santa Barbara announced in the Fall of 2018 that it launched a bike-share program with HOPR with a total of 1,200 bicycles in circulation on campus and throughout Isla Vista. A promotional video was sent through social media channels as the university lauded the program for increased sustainability helping to achieve their goal of 100% alternative transportation by students.
“The main challenge was economic, ridership revenue is not enough to pay the bills. This is true for most transit modes,” said Chelsea Davidoff of HOPR to The Daily Nexus. HOPR was expected to secure a sponsor to subsidize its costs but was not able to make a deal.
HOPR costs $2.50 per ride for every 30 minutes or a $25 monthly pass that includes 30 minutes of daily ride time with $0.25 per minute thereafter.
UCSB's Transportation Alternatives Program (T.A.P.) plans to replace HOPR’s with a similar company, BCycle, that offers a variety of bikes including electric options.
There's no date of when the new service will be operational on campus.
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