THE CITY BIKES that have proven so popular in Dublin will today begin to be rolled out across the country.
The bicycles will have 19 stations across Galway City – with 195 of the vehicles on offer to tourists and residents. Next month the vehicles will be debuted in Cork and Limerick.
Since being launched in Dublin five years ago, the scheme has been used over 8 million times. The record number of journeys in one day is 15,441.
To use the scheme, members of the public have to pay an annual subscription fee of €5 (although this will go up to €10 in January) per city – and a €150 guarantee is required to be paid if the bike is lost.
Speaking at their launch today, Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Paschal Donohoe, whose department is funding the scheme, said:
The success of this scheme in the capital has been remarkable, with a recent doubling of the number of stations and a trebling of the number of bikes to meet demand.
Earlier this year, a sponsorship deal signed with Coca Cola allowed the Dublin Bikes to be extended significantly across the city.
Around the country
The Minister went on to say that the regional outreach of the scheme will see 730 bikes made available for hire around the country. These will include 195 in Galway, 215 in Limerick and 320 in Cork.
It is estimated that each bike will be used 3 times a day – resulting in 750,000 trips in the schemes first year of operation.
The scheme has been funded through the National Transport Authority (NTA) and has received €5.1 million for its set up in the three cities. The potential for further outreach remains a possibility depending on the success of this stage of expansion.
Last year €3 million was allocated under the Regional Cities Programme in Galway to get more people to walk, cycle and use public transport.
December 8 will see the service being launched in Limerick – with it being extended into Cork 10 days later on December 18.
People can sign up to the bike scheme through the website, www.bikeshare.ie.
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