Divvy Bikes Look to Expand into South Shore
For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Divvy Bikes program, it is a system provided by the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) where bikes are rented to users for 30 minute intervals and returned to one of the network of docking stations located throughout a city as part of a bike sharing system. The bikes are rented for 30 minute intervals in order to insure all riders have a bike available to them. CDOT received initial funding for Divvy through federal grants and the City’s TIF funds.
Divvy representatives, presented to the South Shore Chamber, Inc.’s (SSCI) membership last week at, 1750 E 71st St., during the organization's monthly meeting, to discuss potential Divvy Bike station locations in the South Shore community.
Divvy plans to increase its overall presence in Chicago expects to add an additional 175 bike stations throughout the city’s north, south and west sides.
“In 2013, the City rolled out with 300 bike share stations and 3,000 bike share stations from across the City,” said Lisa Dziekan, Senior Project Manager for Metro Strategies who spoke during the meeting. “CDOT expects to be rolling out with additional stations in 2014. Where would you like to see Divvy?”
During the presentation, Divvy representatives displayed a street map of South Shore and allowed participants to mark commerce corridors, key intersections and residential areas where they believed a Divvy Bike station would be advantageous to the community. Typically, Divvy Bike stations are located near public transit stops, retail shopping centers and other high traffic areas.
Proposed Divvy Bike station locations in the South Shore area include:
· 71st & Jeffery
· 79th & Stoney Island
· 71st & Exchange
· 63rd & Lake Shore Drive
Some SSCI members and South Shore residents voiced concerns about how the South Shore community was going to benefit from the presence of Divvy Bikes.
“I think [Divvy] could be a great asset to bring to this community, especially around the lakefront especially around the summer time” said Sherelle Martin, a South Shore resident. “I think a lot of us are concerned about the revenue and how it is going to impact us economically. What are we going to gain by having Divvy in our community?”
When asked if the presence of Divvy Bikes could be a potential economic boost for the South Shore area, CDOT spokesman Pete Scales stated, “I think ultimately if you have Divvy stations in neighborhood commercial corridors it is an economic development tool in a way. You’re providing additional parking and bringing more people to that commercial area. That’s definitely a revenue generator for a neighborhood.”
For more information visit DivvyBikes.com
SSCI holds its monthly meetings on every Wednesday at the end of the month for its members to learn more about potential propositions that may be made available to the community.
The South Shore Chamber, Inc. works with its member businesses and organizations to foster a relationship of resources, benefits and information to help improve the South Shore community, its businesses and those in nearby connecting communities.
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