Check out BIXI Toronto’s 80 downtown bike locations on one interactive map

BIXI is slated to launch in Toronto on May 3 with 1,000 bikes spread out over 80 stations. While we’re all for bringing the Montreal bike-sharing company to the city’s congested streets, the initial offering is a little limited. All 1,500 docking stations are confined to the area between Bloor, Spadina, Queens Quay and Jarvis Street, with a pair of outliers at Jarvis on Queen Quay and in Kensington Market.
For the uninitiated, BIXI is simple to use: it takes a small credit card payment to unlock a bike, which can be procured for a one-time fee of $5 for 24 hours or $12 for 72 hours (monthly and yearly subscriptions are also offered at $40 and $95, respectively). Considering the program’s success in Montreal—with 400 stands and 5,000 bikes scattered across the city—we’re hoping BIXI Toronto takes hold among the city’s commuters as the warmer weather rolls in. Of course, real success might require that the operation expands to include other Toronto neighborhoods. We’re pretty sure the latte sippers in far-flung boroughs like Trinity Bellwoods and Leslieville like to ride bikes, too.
• Need to borrow a bicycle? Bixi launces in May [Toronto Star]
• Bixi begins installing bike-sharing hubs [City News]
• BIXI Toronto station locations revealed [BlogTO]
Bummer. I was planning on subscribing, but i’d have to walk halfway to work to get to a stand. Doesn’t seem worth it. You’d think it would at least go to Parliament :(
I did the Bixi in Montreal….beware the fine print…5 or 6 hrs on one of those will cost you the equivalent of a bike’s worth. Approx 80 bucks. I think you should check the facts to make sure your data is correct. It’s not 5 bucks for 24 hrs…. that is just the cost to remove the bike from the stand. There is then a charge for every 15 minutes the bike is out of that stand….. rip off if you plan to use it for any length of time unlocked.
How great is this
No, Steve is misinformed… you pay $5 for 24 hours of use as long as your rides are all under 30 minutes (ie. you return your bike to any other location within 30 minutes). If you take longer than 30 minutes for each ride, that’s when they start charging you an extra fee.
I rode the bixi system in Montreal last fall and it was great! Lets hope that the Toronto system is sustainable and successful, and that it expands beyond its initial service area before Rob Ford gets angry at it.
To be fair, you are correct that my info is not thorough…… in a comment box.
The article states that it’s 5 dollars for a 24 hr period… not true. You are correct about the half hour rides but I stand by the statement that “If kept at any length of time” it is VERY expensive. It is also not explained very well on the service kiosks. In MY view, it is misleading.
Rob Ford is unlikely to get angry at it. That’s like a at being angry at scientific calculator. I doubt he would know one if he saw one.
CAT…cat being angry at a… oh, forget it.
Such a great option for tourist – I hope they utilize it and are not afraid to ride the mean streets of TO. I used the Velib system in Paris as a tourist and loved the way it allowed me to interact with the city.
I am not sure how sustainable it is for locals, as it’s not that far reaching, and in some cases riding the TTC costs about the same, and riding your own bike is free. I’m optimistic though and happy to see it join our city.
Yep, the fee structure needs to be more clearly presented at stations and on the BIXI website. The organizers risk creating a PR disaster when monthly bills arrive. Also, the 30-minute “limit” seems unnecessarily restrictive in T.O.
its not rocket science. it says 5/day if you use it beyond 30 mins you will be charged. its in english. return the bike, wait 5 mins use another for 30 mins. i understand if you dont understand the concept of time use but at least try to educate yourself instead of making ignorant remarks.
I like to think I can read instructions, but I totally just got charged $37 for a Bixi rental because I didn’t even see the fine print on the kiosk about the 30-minute limit. LAME.
I’m a tourist. One day, I road a bixy bike in toronto. I really understood rental fee as $5 for 24hr. The day, I road a bike for 5hr. Definately, I thought my credit card just aproved $5. But, later… I found $87 aproved on mesage. I’m very suprised. It’s so much terrible problem! “$5 for 24hr” is absolutely false advertisement. I think that a company, bixy toronto should apologize and compensate for exess charges. I’m very disappointed at this experience in toronto…
Hi, I’m not sure tourist return bikes every half hour and then wait 5 minutes before getting another bike. I run city bike tours and meet tourists on BIXI’s everyday who swear to me it is only costing them $5 a day. Sometimes they get abusive when I tell them a 3 1/2 hour tour of Toronto on a BIXI will cost them $42.50. Here is the math:
http://tourcycle.ca/bixi.html
BIXI is a system for urban commuters and other short term users. Unless you are well organized and can leave your bike every half hour in the centre core then it is cheaper to buy a beater on craigslist.
Bixie Beware the Unsuspecting Tourist! Your credit card could get frozen for longer than your stay in Toronto! I have a 16 year old French exchange student staying with my 15 year old daughter. Last Thursday we rented Bixie bikes to ride around the U of T. As I could only put two bikes on my credit card, I asked her to use her card for her bike. After about a 30 minute ride, we returned the bikes. The next day she tried to use her card, and it was declined. After inquiries with Bixie, we were told there was a $250 security deposit on her account which would be in place until September 17 (almost two weeks!)Is this something you have time for as a tourist or a student? Between the 15 minutes I spent trying to get the bike out of the rack because the codes don’t work half the time, necessitating a call to Bixie (on hold for 10 minutes) and then 15 minutes trying to deal with my young guest’s credit card, I have now spent more time dealing with Bixie than riding the bike. I wish I hadn’t bothered!
used bixi in montreal. it sucked! many of the touch screens were broken, and we got stranded at the most distant station. the system wouldn’t give us bikes to ride. beware!
COMPLETE RIP OFF! me and my boyfriend rented the bikes to go to centre island for the day, thinking the 5$ per bike was for 24hrs…til i checked my credit card statement weeks later to see a charge of 71$$$$!!!!
i called and the lady said she may be able to issue me a refund. but WTF?!?!?! read the FINE FINE FINE print. smh