Bluebike Program Peddling Into Watertown

WATERTOWN, MA — Cyclists in Watertown are in for a treat as the town get added to the list of five municipalities joining the Bluebikes bike-share program. Watertown will add six new stations to expand and extend the Bluebikes service area later this summer.

Bluebikes is a bike-share program that allows riders to use bicycles at designated docking stations for a specified amount of time and return them to a docking station closest to them when they've finished the ride. The stations are solar-powered and riders use an app to pay for and unlock the bikes from the dock.

Bluebikes docks can already be found in Boston, Cambridge and Somerville.

Watertown and the new municipalities involved are introducing the docked Bluebikes system for a two-year pilot and will evaluate performance at the end of the term. The new communities are funding this expansion effort alongside Lyft, the contracted operator of Bluebikes. Funds in Arlington, Chelsea, Newton, and Watertown are also partly thanks to a MassDOT Workforce Transportation grant received earlier this year by these four municipalities.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, the title sponsor of Bluebikes, is sponsoring a ‘first ride free’ program throughout the month of August, making it easier for new riders to try Bluebikes. New customers across the Bluebikes system can take advantage of this promotion for a free first ride by simply downloading the Bluebikes app, creating an account, and opening the app.

Steve Magoon, Watertown Assistant Town Manager and Director of Community Development and Planning, said he's looking forward to bringing the program to Watertown.

“This is an exciting opportunity to bring bike share to Watertown, and provide connections to the other communities and to the T, with a consistent program throughout the region. The experience for the public will be seamless and much more functional.”