Minneapolis Bike Share: We're more like Lyon, France

Bike peeps in Minneapolis love to compare themselves to other cities. And while we don't think they need to compare themselves, as they are already impossibly awesome and biking in Minneapolis is, for the most part, a joy.

Here is how the Bike Sharing program in Lyon, France fared in its first full year of operation. Shaun Murphy, numbers guru for the City of Minneapolis, compiled these stats from bike share system reports conducted in Lyon. If we want to see how a bike share program could fare in our fair city... This is some great data:

In Lyon, France, bicycling increased by 44% in the first year of operation.  Of the 2 million trips taken on public bikes, 150,000 (or 7.5%) replaced car trips.   This is approximately 1,000 (or 400?) trips per day in a metropolitan area with a population of 1.8 million.  Additionally, public bike trips replaced other modes including walking (37%), transit (50%), and private bikes (4%).  10% of public bike trips were taken in conjunction with transit.  Literature available from Lyon indicates that most public bike share users have long-term transit passes, resulting in a minimal detriment toward transit revenues.

Pop Facts: Lyon has about 100,000 more people than Minneapolis. And a bike share program of 3,000-4,000 bikes. The Minneapolis program, if it gets the green light, will have 1,000 bikes.