Torontonians pay higher Bixi fees than…well, everyone
Living in Toronto has been getting pricier and pricier, and the city’s rap for being expensive extends to its Bixi memberships. BlogTO ran the numbers on bike-sharing programs here and in other North American cities, and it turns out Toronto pays more than everyone—even the notoriously expensive New York City will have a cheaper program when it launches in a few months. (Annual subscriptions for both cost $95, but riders in the Big Smoke have to return their bikes within 30 minutes, while New Yorkers will get 45 minutes of gratis pedalling time.) According to the fancy colour-coded chart, Bostonians pay $85 a year, Montrealers $80.50, Chicagoans $75, and Houstonians a mere $50. See the chart [BlogTO] »
I’d be happy to pay the 95 annually but the thirty minutes bugs me. Essentially you can’t stop for anything.
solid idea, retarded follow through. is there actually something you can do in 30 mins in a sprawling city full of traffic lights and dubious politicians?
This headline is silly. The price difference between $75 to $95 a *year* is next to nothing over the period of a year. You should try comparing cash fare for a short streetcar/bus/subway ride in those cities. Secondly, I can say from 1 year of experience enjoying Bixi in Toronto that 30 minutes can get you very very far. My average trip between a subway station and the office, a restaurant or the gym is well under 10 minutes. That same trip on foot would exceed 20 minutes. And who knows how long by TTC when you count waiting at a stop and sitting in traffic. When you factor in all those potential costs, $95/year is an absolute steal.