The city is partnering with car service Lyft to expand its bike share system .
Lyft will investment $100 million to bring Citi Bike to a more “economically diverse range of communities.”
Announcing the plan alongside reps from Lyft on the steps of the Bronx County Courthouse, Mayor Bill de Blasio said the expansion will double the size of the bike share service area and triple the number of bikes over the next five years.
This third phase of Citi Bike’s expansion will bring bikes to all of Manhattan, as well as into the Bronx, and deeper into Brooklyn and Queens.
Citi Bike also announced a $300,000 expansion grant program, sponsored by Healthfirst, as well as a new handcycle pilot for the disability community.
“This expansion will help us build a more fair and equitable city for all New Yorkers,” said de Blasio.
“Even more communities will have access to this low-cost, sustainable mode of transportation. With double the territory and triple the number of bikes over the next few years, Citi Bike will become an even better option for travel around New York City.”
Citi Bike has begun the expansion with 25 new stations along the L-train corridor in East Williamsburg and Bushwick. In the months ahead, it will add more stations in these neighborhoods and within Ridgewood, Queens.
Next, Citi Bike will expand into the South Bronx and Upper Manhattan with stations installed in 2020.
