Amid declining ridership, Barclays Bank has announced its intention to cancel its sponsorship of London's bike-share system after only paying half its promised investment. The announcement is just the latest challenge for the stumbling system.
"Launched in summer 2010 to great enthusiasm, London's 4,000 "Boris Bikes" (so called after Mayor Boris Johnson) were supposed to usher a new age of car-free, cycle friendly streets to the city," writes Feargus O'Sullivan. "This year, however, their popularity has fallen by almost a third."
"So why has London's bike-share scheme gone awry?" he asks. "In order of gravity, the answers seem to be cost, danger, and patchy maintenance."
"Still, there's life in London's bike-share scheme yet. In fact, the scheme plans to expand its scope next spring, introducing 2,000 more bikes and expanding docking stations into Southwest London." Though it's unclear how Barclays' announcement might affect those plans.
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