Apparently Toronto's dysfunctional mayor hasn't stopped the rest of the city's government from functioning. With the city's bike share program facing insolvency, the city council voted to provide the Bixi-operated system with an infusion of cash.
"Over the objections of an absent Mayor Rob Ford, the Toronto city council voted earlier today to bail out the financially troubled Toronto Bike Share program operated by Bixi," reports Richard Masoner.
"The council today voted to provide additional financial propping, using $5 million available from a settlement between an outdoor toilet provider and the Toronto Parking Authority in a “toilets-for-bikes” swap. The council also directed the city planning director to consider a provision of bike sharing stations and bikes as part of the planning approval process with the goal of complementing, strengthening and expanding Toronto’s bike share program."
The Toronto program's financial troubles follows news that "Bixi’s parent company, the Public Bike Share Company (PBSC) of Montreal, has apparently been bleeding money for years."
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