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| BIXI bikestation. Photo by stevey |
As expected, Mount Pleasant will receive a bike station under the District's new bike sharing system, Capital Bikeshare. This bike share will replace the SmartBike DC system which currently houses 100 bikes at 10 stations. The new stations will accommodate over 1,000 bikes all over the city and some in Arlington as well, via regional partnership.
Capital Bikeshare is based on the BIXI system (BIcycle + taXI = BIXI). BIXI was first active in Montreal, then Vancouver, Boston, Minneapolis, even Europe and Australia. Now it's on the way to DC. The new bikes are awesome looking, although I liked the SmartBike DC bikes, too. DDOT plans to have the bikes and stations operational by the end of fall this year. I am highly skeptical, but hey, surprise me DDOT. The Mount Pleasant station will be near Lamont Park or the corner of 17th and Mount Pleasant Streets NW. Don't quite have the exact location, but perhaps in the park itself? Or near the H8 bus shelter?
There are three other stations within walking distance of Lamont Park; 14th and Irving, 16th and Columbia, Adams Mill and Lanier Place. And below is the DDOT map with all of the station locations, including Arlington VA. Exciting stuff! For all of its troubles, DDOT is really adopting a forward thinking philosophy regarding transit by instituting these types programs (Circulator, Streetcar, Bikeshare, etc). To that I say huzzah!
View Capital Bikeshare in a larger map
