August 2, 2022

Reddy Bikeshare, in Partnership with Independent Health, Grows Beyond 100 stations

With more stations than ever before, Reddy Bikeshare invites Western New Yorkers to take on more active forms of transportation.

As Reddy Bikeshare marks its seventh season, Western New Yorkers will now have more places than ever before to explore, exercise, and connect with folks using a Reddy Bike.

The Reddy Bikeshare Team and Independent Health are proud to announce that 13 new stations are being installed this season. That addition pushes the self-service network to a new milestone of over 100 stations across Western New York.

“Demand to explore Buffalo and Niagara Falls by bike is growing at a fast pace and so too is our network of stations,” said Simon Husted, Communications and Marketing Coordinator for Reddy Bikeshare. “Every week, someone is asking our Team how a station can be added closer to their business, work or home.”

Reddy Bikeshare launched on July 21, 2016, and has steadily grown in usage and membership ever since. Over those six years, users have pedaled 434,300 miles across the region, averaging 72,300 miles every season. This season’s use is on pace to record the most miles thus far, thanks in part to an investment in new, quicker unlocking technology installed in April and maintaining some of the lowest rates for bike sharing in the nation.

“The physical and mental health benefits of biking are endless, especially when you ride regularly,” said Kathy Glieco, Vice President, Marketing at Independent Health. “This milestone—expanding Reddy Bikeshare beyond 100 stations—represents another big step forward for the cities of Buffalo and Niagara Falls, which continue to climb the ranks among the most bike-friendly regions in the country. Independent Health is proud to work with Reddy Bikeshare to give more Western New Yorkers access to a bicycle, making living a healthy lifestyle easier and more equitable.”

Evan Wright is among a group of Western New Yorkers who became interested in biking as a form of routine outdoor exercise to lose weight. As a resident of Niagara Falls, Evan utilized the discounted $1 annual pass program available to all residents through a partnership with the City of Niagara Falls in the Spring of 2021. After signing up, Wright unlocked a Reddy Bike almost every weekend at Lasalle Waterfront Park and challenged himself to pedal longer distances around town.

“I wasn’t able to buy a bike and Reddy Bikeshare provided access to start living an active lifestyle,” said Wright who has lost 150 pounds and has since bought a bike. Since first becoming a Reddy member, the number of miles Wright pedals every weekend has tripled–often making round trips to Lewiston, Lockport or Downtown Buffalo from Niagara Falls.

Wright’s story of weight loss is extraordinary and speaks to the power of biking as part of a healthy way of life. Adding 13 new stations to the Reddy network means more communities now have access to start a biking routine or build upon one.

The 13 station locations include the following:

EM Tea Coffee Cup Café, 80 Oakgrove Ave - Hamlin Park
Nash House Museum, 36 Nash St - Michigan Street African American Heritage Corridor
Niagara and Breckenridge Streets, 1242 Niagara St – Niagara Street Cycle Track Corridor
500 Seneca, 500 Seneca St - Larkinville
Delavan Grider Community Center, 877 E Delavan Ave - Delavan-Grider
Erie Basin Marina, 20 Wilkeson Way - Waterfront
201 Ellicott, 201 Ellicott St, - Downtown
Seneca One Plaza, 1 Seneca St - Downtown
The Foundry, 298 Northampton St - Masten Park
Frank Lloyd Wright’s Martin House, 125 Jewett Pkwy - Parkside
Ohio Street across from Conway Park, near 405 Ohio St - Old First Ward
313 Broadway - Willert Park
East Side Bike Club Community Workshop and E-Bike Library, 1057 Kensington Ave – Bailey-Kensington

The station expansion was made possible, in part, by federal grant funding facilitated by GO Buffalo Niagara, which encourages Western New Yorkers to commute using sustainable modes of transportation like biking, transit and carpooling.

In addition to adding more Reddy stations, the Team is exploring how to best include electric pedal-assist bikes into the fleet. This summer, Shared Mobility Inc., the non-profit organization that facilitates Reddy Bikeshare, will be adding a limited quantity of electronic pedal-assist bikes to be used for free by Reddy annual pass members as part of a small pilot program.

“Pedal assist e-bikes provide a gentle assist that helps riders go farther and make biking more accessible, especially for folks who haven’t ridden a bike in a while,” said Mitch LaRosa, Shared Mobility’s Chief Development Officer. “We hope to learn from our members’ experiences using e-bikes during this pilot as we continue to bring innovative transportation options to Western New York.”

About Shared Mobility

Shared Mobility Inc. (SMI) of Buffalo, New York is a transportation solutions nonprofit that focuses on cutting-edge technology and best practices to build mobility systems that serve disadvantaged communities in small and mid-sized markets. These communities are not traditional markets for shared mobility operators, and SMI’s work often requires tailoring mobility solutions to fit the needs of each area. Throughout its 10 years of experience, SMI has worked across the shared mobility spectrum in the fundraising, deployment, growth, and evaluation of shared transportation systems. This includes bikesharing, carsharing, volunteer transportation, vanpooling, and transportation demand management programs. It seeks to apply the same social-equity focused mindset to its nationwide portfolio of projects. For further information, visit www.sharedmobilty.org.