I couldn't disagree more. If anything, the city should separate the docks from the bikes, so more companies can compete with their own bike services and infrastructure could be shared and companies taxed to expand it.
then the city could place these docks on literally every block and companies could provide the bikes and service to rebalance the bikes on the docks as necessary. that environment would result in more variety of bikes (cargo, electric, tandem, etc) with more frequency and cheaper costs, as they wouldn't have to be concerned about political nonsense on getting the docks setup to begin with.
If you don't have a membership, it now costs more than a subway ride to have a bike for a half an hour. It's like they have an offering for tourists (high price per use) and an offering for people who use it all the time (membership), but they don't really have an option for the once in a while type of person.
A membership is $205/yr (~$185/yr with a citi credit card). I don't know what your standard is for "once in a while" but I visit NYC once every two months or so and get enough use out of it during my visits that I just maintain an annual membership.
There’s no market in the once in a while bike rider, I think it makes perfect sense that you see the value and pay and join if you want to maximize the value each month.
What a strange proposal. If bike sharing is “a bank propaganda program,” and you think your peers agree with you, why not propose the city provide it? The New York City budget is over $100bn a year.
> Citi pays $20 million a year for the rights to Citi Field, and that's just regular signage on a stadium where men play the world's most boring sport
Citi Field gives Citi an exclusive, branded venue to take clients and cut deals. You’re not going to win M&A business with a free bike.
No, you just buy a really nice suite if you want a venue for client entertainment. You buy the naming rights to mass market the brand. It's coming from the same budget as TV ads and billboards.
Sure, and I mention that elsewhere [1]. But Citi bankers use their turf more effectively than the competition; I have never heard of anyone else closing a deal there, they go to the Yankees Stadium.
Point is: there are single line items that justify a multimillion dollar spend at Citi Field. I can think of no analog for bikes.
Gotta give the cops their billions unfortunately. No room in the budget for frivolous luxuries like "things that make citizens lives better". Heck, they're even going to hobble our libraries to feed the cop beast.
One of the worst readings imaginable on what is actually “we, the people of this city, should charge an evil but apparently necessary business more money for the valuable sponsorship they willingly pay for next time the contract is up”
That's based on how much value the buyer is getting and how much money they have. According to the article, value is high and Citi has gobs of money. Therefore, the seller needs to negotiate harder. Negotiating hard to achieve a win-win is the most capitalistic outcome you could wish for.
"I want this for free" -> I'd like this to be accessible to lower income citizens, increase usage of cycles that improves health in general and lowers our city's impact on the climate.
Has the author given any thought to how many bikes (each with its own servicing/replacement cost) would need to be added to the system to support millions of non-paying members? I would guess he has not.
Personally, this is literally the first time I've thought of Citibank in connection with Citibike in years. I think there might be a ceiling on the brand-awareness benefits of these roaming billboards.
Heh. Obviously NYC should try to get the best deal possible out of Citi. The comparison to the naming rights to Citi Field is reasonable. That said, I think Citi would rather walk away than be 'forced' to pay the costs of the entire system. That just paints them as an easy target for the next municipality.
Readit News
then the city could place these docks on literally every block and companies could provide the bikes and service to rebalance the bikes on the docks as necessary. that environment would result in more variety of bikes (cargo, electric, tandem, etc) with more frequency and cheaper costs, as they wouldn't have to be concerned about political nonsense on getting the docks setup to begin with.
If you don't have a membership, it now costs more than a subway ride to have a bike for a half an hour. It's like they have an offering for tourists (high price per use) and an offering for people who use it all the time (membership), but they don't really have an option for the once in a while type of person.
> Citi pays $20 million a year for the rights to Citi Field, and that's just regular signage on a stadium where men play the world's most boring sport
Citi Field gives Citi an exclusive, branded venue to take clients and cut deals. You’re not going to win M&A business with a free bike.
Point is: there are single line items that justify a multimillion dollar spend at Citi Field. I can think of no analog for bikes.
[1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35727426
Dead Comment
Hosted on a non not-for profit website.
With content that's not Creative Commons.
Bemoaning not sharing profits.
That's based on how much value the buyer is getting and how much money they have. According to the article, value is high and Citi has gobs of money. Therefore, the seller needs to negotiate harder. Negotiating hard to achieve a win-win is the most capitalistic outcome you could wish for.
"I want this for free" -> I'd like this to be accessible to lower income citizens, increase usage of cycles that improves health in general and lowers our city's impact on the climate.
Deleted Comment
Personally, this is literally the first time I've thought of Citibank in connection with Citibike in years. I think there might be a ceiling on the brand-awareness benefits of these roaming billboards.