Jersey City and Hoboken Unite Bike Share Programs

JERSEY CITY, NJ — Biking between Jersey City and Hoboken got a lot easier on Wednesday as the cities unveiled the new bike share partnership.

The cities are partnering with Lyft to launch a unified Citi Bike system that would place docks and 820 bikes across Jersey City and Hoboken to start, under a five-year agreement. To celebrate the new unification, Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop and Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla took a ceremonial ride between the two cities on Wednesday as well as a dozen cyclists.

The group rode from Jersey City Hall to Pier A in Hoboken, docking stations are present at both locations. While Jersey City has had the Citi Bikes for some time, Hoboken just installed 10 stations with bikes on the way.

Bhalla said the enthusiasm for the program is evident in the display of bikes from Jersey City that are already docked in Hoboken.

"Today is a historic day for both cities in that we are making that first and last mile commute a little bit easier for the residents of Hoboken and Jersey City," Bhalla said.

A total of 15 stations will be added in Hoboken with 75 bikes in the city as a whole — by June Bhalla said Hoboken will have up to 29 stations and 300 bikes. In addition to having integration with Hoboken for the first time, Jersey City will add two new Citi Bike stations in Greenville in the first 60 days, after hearing a need from local riders. From there, within the next two years there will be 15 more stations with the contract stating 75 percent of all new stations must be outside of downtown, utilizing community input.

Members of Bike JC, a non-profit bike advocacy group in Jersey City, expressed hope that the new unification will continue to put an emphasis on municipal bike programs and improvements. Tony Borelli, Bike JC member, said he hopes this partnership will stress the continued importance of bike lane expansions and more stations in other parts of the city.

"Today is a significant day in micro-transit systems here in Hudson County, and it speaks to what's possible when mayor's work together," Fulop said.

The new Citi Bikes are fitted with peddle assist, which takes some pressure off of cyclists and helps keep the gears turning. Fulop pointed out that peddle assist makes the bikes and the program more accessible to people who may not have thought they could handle cycling through the city.

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