E-bike riders who rented cycles using Richmond’s original bike share program will be able to ride again starting on Monday.
Relaunching RVA BikeShare comes after 300 e-bikes have been locked up for months at the self-service stations peppered throughout the city. Bewegen Technologies, the Canadian outfit that operated the previous iteration of RVA BikeShare, abruptly entered bankruptcy in May.
The new program is a joint venture of the city's Office of Equitable Transit and Mobility, WeGo-Share and Evolve Mobility.
To entice the return of registered BikeShare users, Richmond’s offering free rides through the end of the year, according to a city press release, to make up for lost rides. It also said Monday's relaunch coincides with a new self-service station in Downtown Richmond outside Dominion Energy Center (600 E. Grace St.).
The release said people would need to download the RVA BikeShare app to use the system. As of Friday, the app was not available on the Apple App Store for iOS devices or Google Play Store for Android devices. The RVA 311 app also didn’t include BikeShare information.
Officials say these — along with the currently defunct RVA BikeShare website — will be set for Monday. (City officials said the website will relaunch Monday as well.)
Prices to start pedaling range from $1.75 per trip up to $18 per month. An annual membership costs $96.
Current pricing on the website will remain the same when pricing starts up again on Jan. 1, 2024.
