Hearing On Placement of Citi Bike Docking Stations in Brownstone Brooklyn

Photo: MK Metz

Do you live in Community Board 6 in Brooklyn? (Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill, Columbia Waterfront, Gowanus, Park Slope and Red Hook.)

 Have something to say about the placement or size of CitiBike docking stations? Here's your chance to comment. CB6 sent this notice:

IN THE MATTER OF the expansion of New York City’s bike share program, CitiBike, into the Brooklyn Community Board 6 district, the Community Board’s Transportation/Public Safety Committee will conduct a Public Hearing to gather public comment on the deployment of the bicycle docking stations, and any other aspect of the bike share program, for the primary purpose of reviewing and evaluating the density, location, placement, and size of the district’s docking stations with the Department of Transportation.

DATE: Thursday, October 20, 2016
TIME: 6:30 pm
PLACE: NYPD/78th Police Precinct
65 6th Avenue, 4th floor
(between Dean/Bergen Streets)
Brooklyn, NY 11217

Members of the public will have the opportunity to testify up to 3 minutes. Speakers must sign-in at the meeting to testify. There is no pre-registration. Speakers may not transfer time to other speakers. Written comment may also be emailed to the district office at info@BrooklynCB6.org or mailed to the address below by 5:00pm on October 20th.

250 Baltic Street, Brooklyn, New York 11201-6401


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Man Kills Wife with SUV; 62 More Citi Bike Stations; and More Brooklyn Briefs

What's with all these naked (or almost naked) guys performing in Union Square, anyway? Photo: MK Metz

- A 26-year-old woman was killed outside her Brooklyn home by her husband backing an SUV out of the driveway. (An unconfirmed comment raises many questions.) [Gothamist]

- Citi Bike expansion bringing 62 new stations to Brooklyn. [Curbed]

- A wetland grows in Brooklyn: Filthy NYC tributary turned back to nature in $455M project. [AP]

- Some things you may not know about the Gowanus Canal. [Brooklyn Eagle]

- A Brooklyn-based group is arguing that gentrification is a human rights violation. [The Atlantic]

- Massive police presence at Thursday’s anti-police violence rally and march in Downtown Brooklyn. [Brooklyn Eagle]


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All Those Stolen Citi Bikes Ending Up in Brooklyn?

Photo: MK Metz

The NY Post says Brooklyn’s "worst neighborhoods" have become dumping grounds for Citi Bikes — which locals are stealing from docks in "nice neighborhoods" and using as one-way rides home

Cops have discovered more than 67 of the clunky bikes abandoned on streets and sidewalks in East New York, Brownsville and Crown Heights.

Earlier, a correspondent told Gothamist that so many Citi Bikes get stolen "they can't keep up with them!"

According to Citi Bike, "The software that runs the stations and overall system will record exactly when and where each bike is checked out and checked back in, and GPS in each bike will trace its path."

So, no problem, right?



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Citi Bikes: They're Going Broke

Photo: MK Metz. McBrooklyn.com

Last October, then-Mayor Bloomberg attributed the early losses suffered by his Citi Bike program to the costs of getting the system up and running.

"“It’s a ways to commute, it’s a mass transit system that requires no federal, state, or city monies whatsoever,” Bloomberg said. “If they make money we’re going to share in the profits. So, you know, everybody should be happy with this.”

Now that Bloomberg is gone, the Wall Street Journal reports that Citi Bike is broke and its leaders are trying to raise tens of millions of dollars to rescue the program.

The WSJ analyzes what went wrong and it's a lot: computer glitches, inability to get the bikes where they need to be, the necessity to load new batteries into the charging stations, layoffs cutting into customer service, lack of secondary sponsors, and more.

And another thing: tourists -- who would pay the big bucks for the day passes -- aren't using the bikes as much as the city thought they would. And when they do, the kiosks frequently won't accept payment.

Business Mayor: What happened to the business plan?

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NYC Harnesses Tourists Peddling Citi Bikes to Power the New Years Eve Ball

Photo: MK Metz

NYC has set up a Citi Bike Pedal Power Station at 7th Avenue and 42nd Street with six Citi Bike bicycles for tourists to ride to generate energy to light the New Years Eve ball.

The energy generated is being collected and stored in batteries until the big celebration.

(NYC residents are also invited to power up the New Years ball, but face it: We gotta work.)

The Citi Bike Pedal Power Station is located on the Southeast corner of 7th Avenue and 42nd Street. It was open over the weekend, and will be open again today from 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM.

Citi Bike brand ambassadors will be on-site taking photos of participating riders. Participants will receive a free Citi Bike day pass and they will be sent a digital photo of them helping power the Ball that they can save and share. More here.


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Three Citi Bikes Stolen Tuesday Night

Photo: MK Metz

A report came in over the scanner at 11 p.m. Tuesday night: Three Citi Bikes were stolen and the perps were "riding around" the area.

One suspect was wearing a black shirt and gray shorts. No further information was provided, though we're pretty it went down in Brooklyn.

UPDATE: Apparently the bikes have chips in them to track them if stolen. If true, this should be interesting.

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Library Rally; Tobacco Warehouse; and More Brooklyn Briefs

- “Kids for Libraries” rally this Saturday at the Brooklyn Heights branch library. [BHB]

- Outdoor exhibition ‘THE FENCE’ opens Thursday at Brooklyn Bridge Park with tour and refreshments. [Brooklyn Eagle]

- LPC endorses plan for Brooklyn Bridge Park Tobacco Warehouse. [TRD]

- Expanded Native Flora Garden opens at Brooklyn Botanic Garden. [NY Times]

- For real? People are holding stationary "spin classes" on docked Citi Bikes. [Gothamist]

- DONE DEAL: Brooklyn Nets hire Jason Kidd. [Brooklyn Eagle]

- Anthony Weiner could win the election by default. [Brooklyn Magazine]


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Problems at NYC Citi Bike Docks Become Apparent

Photo: MK Metz

The bikes work OK, but 10 percent of Citi Bike stations fail each day because of buggy software and battery problems, according to New York Magazine.

One of the problems: Citi Bike’s solar-powered docking stations don’t get enough electricity on cloudy days, according to the NY Post.

The malfunctioning kiosks are causing Citi Bike members to have second thoughts, according to the Boston Globe.

Complaints about poor customer service poured in to Citi Bike's Facebook page on Friday.

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New York Citi Bike Is Hiring

Need a job? New York's Citi Bike share program is hiring.

According to the Citi Bike website, a number of positions are open: call center manager, outreach ambassadors, bike mechanics, customer service agents and more.

Citi Bike better hurry -- Sunday was their busiest day so far, with 22,399 trips of 25 minutes each. 4,524 day passes were sold.

Meanwhile, complaints about poor customer service poured in to Citi Bike's Facebook page on Friday:

* "I sent an email several days ago and still no reply. The stations will not let me rent another bike and your phone does not work..."

* "Can we pick up our keys in person?!"

* "I second that. Would really like to pick my key up!"

* "Did u route the calls to India?"

* "Hoping to receive my key soon... I signed up on April 15 and I haven't received anything yet."

* "Still waiting for my freakin' key!!!!!!"

It would seem that customer service agents need to be hired right away.

Photo by MK Metz

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Navy Yard Greenhouses; Citi Bike Share; and More Brooklyn Briefs

- Coming to the Barclays Center plaza this Saturday: food trucks. [Atlantic Yards Reports]

- Helicopter cops with night-vision goggles stumble onto horseshoe-crab stealing ring. [NY Magazine]

- Brooklyn Navy Yard greenhouse is the latest to debut in complex’s redevelopment. [TRD]

- Despite glitches, Bloomberg says Citi Bike share big success. [Brooklyn Eagle]

- A hundred thanks to Sheepshead Bites for linking us to "Officials Say the Darndest Things."

- Mac n' cheese: Brooklyn Mac opened its Dumbo location last week. [DumboNYC]

- Dog released after death sentence. [Brooklyn Eagle]

- Fifteen people were killed in New York City traffic in April, and 4,409 were injured. [Streetsblog]

- As hurricane season nears, Con Ed shows off equipment’s new protections. [NY Times]

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Underwhelming Citi Bike Turnout in Brooklyn Heights/ DUMBO

Spotted: Citi Bike user in Brooklyn Bridge Park. Photo: MK Metz

On our annual Memorial Day walk yesterday afternoon we ran across hundreds of bicyclists but only counted four people riding the new Citi Bikes.

We started out in Brooklyn Heights and walked north to DUMBO (via Washington Street) then headed south through Brooklyn Bridge Park to Atlantic and then Cobble Hill. From there we walked north along Court Street (with stops for yogurt and shopping) to Clark Street back in Brooklyn Heights. Then just for fun, we walked north and south on Henry Street.

This route brought us past quite a few Citi Bike racks, mostly full of bikes. Our impression was that usage was a bit low on the program's first day. (Except for Clark Street, which was only a third full.) Anyone else have other impressions?

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Citi Bike: Thousands of Helmet-less Amateur Bikers Will Soon Hit the Streets of Brooklyn and Manhattan

Citi Bike dock going in on Pearl Street, DUMBO. Photo: MK Metz

Citi Bike crews have been busy the past couple of days installing solar-powered bike share docks all over Brooklyn Heights, Downtown Brooklyn, DUMBO and Bed-Stuy. After that comes Manhattan.

The new program features thousands of bikes at hundreds of stations and a lot of people seem very excited about it (though some are not totally happy with the placement of the stations).The bikes are not really meant for leisurely rides; rather, they are supposed to get you from your bus or subway to your home, or the "last mile."

DOT says the locations were chosen through well-documented process of consultation with neighborhood residents.

Soon, helmet-less residents and tourists alike will be hitting the streets of New York, pedaling from dock to dock in 30- or 45-minute increments.

It will probably be great. It works in other cities. It's good for the environment.

But for God's sake don't get off the bike. Citi Bike says you could be charged up to $1000 if you lose it.

- NYC: Bike Share outreach  (pdf)

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