To be published here on May 22 at noon.

The U.S. Department of Labor has requested information from the Capital Bikeshare operator Alta Bicycle Share about compliance with federal wage guidelines.

The District, Arlington and Alexandria, the jurisdictions that own Capital Bikeshare, are following this closely.  Alta has assured Capital Bikeshare that they will provide all information requested by the Department of Labor while continuing to operate the bikeshare system.

We thank our members and users of the system for your continued support and look forward to continuing to provide an on-going first class and unchanged level of service to our customers.

Join us on March 28 to celebrate the opening of the newest Capital Bikeshare station at the Walter Reed Community Center on Columbia Pike in Arlington.

Arlington County Board Chair, Walter Tejada, will cut the ribbon and launch the 2013 Arlington expansion wave of 33 new stations focused on the Columbia Pike and Shirlington areas.
 
We are proud to bring red-bike joy to the Columbia Pike neighborhood, and to provide our members with new options.  For more details on the Arlington expansion, click here.

Bonus fact: This is the 200th station in the Capital Bikeshare system.  A testament to the popularity, growth and success of the system.
 
Here are the details:

Capital Bikeshare Ribbon Cutting
Thursday March 28
9am
Walter Reed Community Center
2909 16th Street, S
Arlington, VA

Security measures and traffic restrictions that will be put in place for the upcoming inauguration will have a significant impact on Capital Bikeshare. Please take the time to read the information below regarding the specific impacts the inauguration will have on our service.  In the past, the Secret Service have changed plans and have shut down access as events happen so be prepared to change your route or to make new plans. Be flexible!

Station Removals
Due to security measures being put in place for the inauguration, Capital Bikeshare will be completely removing stations in the area of the inaugural parade route (from the Capitol to the White House) starting this week. 

On Wednesday, January 16, the following stations will be removed:
• 10th & E St NW
• 10th & Constitution Ave NW
• 15th & NY Ave NW

On Thursday, January 17th the following stations will be removed:
• Reagan Building/14th & D St NW
• 14th & G St NW
• 14th & H St NW

Station Reinstallation
Removed stations will be reinstalled starting on Wednesday, January 23rd and be completed by Thursday, January 24th.

Pre- and Post-Inauguration Bike Corrals
In order to accommodate our members while these stations are taken off the street, we will be hosting a bike corral at the 13th and NY NW station from 8am to 10am.  The morning corral will be available on the following days:

• Wednesday, January 16th
• Thursday, January 17th
• Friday, January 18th
• Tuesday, January 22nd
• Wednesday, January 23rd
• Thursday, January 24th

Please note that while we can guarantee you a place to dock your bike, we cannot guarantee that a bike will be available for your return trip, so please plan accordingly.
 
Rebalancing During the Inauguration (Monday, January 21st)
Due to the security perimeter established for the inauguration, a significant number of downtown stations will not be accessible to rebalancing vehicles.  Other stations outside the perimeter will be difficult to access due to road closures, security measures, and anticipated high volumes of traffic.  As a result, we may have difficulty rebalancing many downtown stations.  We ask for your patience during this time.  Please be sure to consult Spotcycle before starting your trip.

Inaccessible Stations on the National Mall (Monday, January 21st)
There will be two stations on the National Mall that will be out of service during the Inauguration: 14th and Jefferson and 12th and Jefferson (Smithsonian Metro). These stations will be shut down during the event and will open up in the evening after the parade has finished. We are expecting this to be around 7pm.

Inauguration Day Bike Corrals
To accommodate the anticipated high usage of Capital Bikeshare on Monday, January 21st, we will be hosting two bike corrals, one each on the north and south sides of the security perimeter:  The north corral will be held at the 17th and K NW station next to Farragut Square.  The south corral will be at the 12th and Independence Ave SW (USDA) station.  Both corrals will be open from 7am to 5pm.  You will be guaranteed a place to drop off your Capital Bikeshare bike but we cannot guarantee a bike for return trips.

Other Inauguration Resources
goDCgo
District Department of Transportation
Downtown BID
US Secret Service

Thanks in advance for your patience.  We will do our best to provide the best possible service in this challenging environment.  Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter for updates.

The Capital Bikeshare Team

District Department of Transportation, Arlington County, City of Alexandria, run by Alta Bicycle Share

Expansion Stations Proposed in All Eight Wards

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – The District Department of Transportation today announced proposed locations for 54 new Capital Bikeshare stations to be installed this winter in the District of Columbia. The list includes proposed new stations in all 8 wards of the city.

“These new locations will mean a 40% increase in the number of CaBi stations in DC,” said DDOT Director Terry Bellamy.  “Combined with new stations in Arlington, Alexandria and soon in Montgomery County, we’re building a robust and truly regional system.”

There are currently 138 stations in DC, 45 in Arlington, and 8 Alexandria.

DDOT selected the 54 locations from a longer list of 78 suggested locations submitted by the public over the past 2 years. DDOT evaluated the locations using several criteria, including population density, employment density, bike-to-work rate, proximity to metro, and proximity to other Bikeshare stations.  Residents also ‘voted’ for their preferences using an interactive crowdsourcing map.

The proposed stations are in a mix and new and existing bikeshare neighborhoods. “We need to balance the desire to expand into new areas with the need for more docks and bikes in existing areas, particularly downtown, where demand is heaviest.” said Chris Holben, DDOT Project Manager for Capital Bikeshare. “Basically, for every ‘expansion’ station we also need more spaces downtown to keep up with demand.”
 
DDOT plans to start installing new stations and bikes in January and finish in March.  Locations not selected in this round of 54 will be considered for the next round.  The complete list is below. You can also view the proposed locations alongside existing stations on a map at http://goo.gl/maps/UJPZs.

To comment on the list of proposed locations, please email ddot.bikeshare@dc.gov by January 15, 2013.

First Round

1 18th Street and Wyoming Avenue NW
2 11th Street and M Street NW
3 14th Street and Clifton Street/ Boys and Girls Club NW
4 15th Street and Euclid Street NW
5 20th Street and Virginia Avenue NW
6 Ellington Bridge, SE corner NW
7 Elm Street and 2nd Street (LeDroit Park) NW
8 New Jersey Avenue and R Street NW
9 Hiatt Place between Park and Irving NW
10 13th Street and U Street NW
11 17th Street and Massachusetts Avenue/JHU NW
12 5th Street and Massachusetts Avenue NW
13 8th Street and D Street NW
14 11th Street and Florida Avenue NW
15 11th Street and K Street NW
16 L’Enfant Plaza at Independence Ave SW
17 11th Street and F Street NW
18 23rd Street and W.H.O. NW
19 Constitution Ave and 21st Street NW
20 34th Street and Water Street NW
21 Connecticut and Nebraska Avenues NW
22 Connecticut Ave and Albemarle St NW
23 O Street and Wisconsin Ave (east) NW
24 Wisconsin Ave and Fessenden St NW
25 Wisconsin Ave and Veazy Street NW
26 14th Street and Upshur Street NW
27 14th Street and Colorado Avenue NW
28 5th Street and Kennedy Street NW
29 Georgia Ave and Decatur Street NW
30 V Street and Rhode Island Ave at Summit Place NE
31 2nd Street and M Street NE
32 Hamlin Street and 7th Street NE
33 12th Street and Irving Street NE
34 Neal Street and Trinidad Avenue NE
35 Rhode Island Ave Metro entrance NE
36 18th Street and Rhode Island Ave NE
37 8th Street and F Street NE
38 Pennsylvania Ave and 3rd Street SE
39 8th Street and East Capitol Street NE
40 15th Street and East Capitol Street NE
41 Independence and Washington/HHS SW
42 Constitution Ave and 2nd St/DOL NW
43 6th Street and Indiana Avenue NW
44 New Jersey Avenue and D Street SE
45 15th St, F St and Tennessee Ave NE
46 9th Street and M Street SE
47 Tingey Street and 3rd Street SE
48 Deanwood Rec Center and Library NE
49 Burroughs Avenue and 49th Street NE
50 Burroughs Ave and Minnesota Ave NE
51 Minnesota/34th Street and Ely Place SE
52 Alabama Avenue and Stanton Road SE
53 MLK, Jr. Ave and Alabama Ave SE
54 MLK, Jr. Ave and Pleasant Street SE

Next Round

55 MLK, Jr. Ave and St. E’s Gate 5 SE
56 14th Street and Fairmont Street NW
57 18th Street and C Street NW
58 L’Enfant Plaza at Banneker Circle SW
59 G Street at MLK Library NW
60 Wisconsin Ave and Ingomar Street NW
61 Brandywine St and Wisconsin Ave NW
62 Connecticut Ave and Porter Street NW
63 O Street and Wisconsin Ave (west) NW
64 Massachusetts Ave and 48th Street NW
65 Van Buren Street and Rec Center NW
66 Ft Totten Metro Station NW
67 Cedar Street underpass (Takoma) NW
68 Piney Branch Rd and Georgia Ave NW
69 1st Street and K Street NE
70 Rhode Island Ave and Franklin St NE
71 18th Street and Monroe Street NE
72 New Jersey Avenue and L Street NW
73 Haines Point Rec Center SW
74 2nd Street and V Street SW
75 Burroughs and Division Avenues NE
76 Ely Place and Ft. Dupont Ice Rink SE
77 16th Street and Minnesota Ave SE
78 MLK, Jr. Ave and St E’s Gate 1 SE

Though many cities and towns allow bicyclists to ride two abreast (two riders side-by-side) so long as they don’t impede traffic, it is often a good idea to remain riding single file on both roads and trails.

1. Riding single file ensures that bicyclists do not obstruct the flow of traffic on single lane or narrow roads.

2. By riding single file, multiple bicyclists use the same space on the road, enabling them to stay out of the door zone while remaining visible to drivers.

3. When riding single file, be sure to communicate with riders in front of and behind you. Signal your turns and stops, and use verbal warnings such as “stopping” or “car approaching”.

4. On trails, riding single file keeps pedestrians and other slow-moving trail users safe.

5. While most drivers are perfectly courteous, it’s always possible that drivers may take offense to bicyclists’ actions, such as blocking a lane of travel. Riding single file can help minimize these frustrations.

This is just one tip for safer cycling, but the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) is a wellspring of more useful information. Make them your go-to resource for safety tips, bike classes, events and more at waba.org.

Capital Bikeshare will be reopening starting at 1pm today. Please note that rebalancing will not resume until 4pm, and the Prince and Union station in Alexandria will remain out of service. If you come across any damage to stations or bikes please let us know via FB or Twitter. If you do choose to ride, please watch for standing water, downed power lines and felled trees. Thanks for your patience and understanding during this severe weather event.

As severe weather and high winds will continue to impact the DC area, Capital Bikeshare will remain closed through Tuesday morning at a minimum. An announcement on when the system will reopen may be made after weather conditions improve and the system is checked for storm-related damage. Thanks for your patience.

Due to the expected severe weather, Capital Bikeshare will be closing temporarily starting at 1am Monday morning. If you have a bike out at this time you will be able to return it, but no new rentals will be available. The system will reopen when weather conditions allow.

To report any damage to Capital Bikeshare stations or bikes please contact our customer service line at 1-877-430-BIKE or email customerservice@capitalbikeshare.com. Posts to Facebook and Twitter would also help Capital Bikeshare track and respond to damaged equipment.

The Washington Nationals October playoff run sure was exciting.  Almost as exciting was the volume of bike activity around Nationals stadium.  Clearly, lots of Nats fans are realizing that getting to and from the game by bike is the way to go!  The bike parking at the stadium was full, every rack and lamppost in the area had a bike locked to it, and the Capital Bikeshare stations were jamming.  In fact, the station closest to the stadium had a staffed bike corral for the playoff games which was used by well over 100 riders each game!

We thought it would be interesting to see where all those Capital Bikeshare riders dispersed to after the game.  Take a look at the visualization above.

Red circles represent the volume of bikes going out from the 3 stations near the stadium. Green circles represent volume of bikes arriving at other stations throughout the system.

This visualization shows trips starting between 4pm and 5pm on October 10, 2012. The start stations included are 1st & N St SE (including corral), M St & New Jersey Ave SE, and 1st & K St SE.

How did Arlington’s portion of Capital Bikeshare do in its second year of service? Are Arlingtonians and visitors using the service? How many trips are made and how much was spent? These questions and a lot more are discussed in Arlington County’s “FY12 Summary Report on Capital Bikeshare” (PDF, 1 MB, Adobe Reader required). The report’s highlights include the service’s continued cost recovery growth, annual key indicator data, member survey analysis, and accomplishments.

Not to spoil the conclusion for you, but yes, the service had a good year. The County expanded Capital Bikeshare throughout the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor during this time period, more than doubling its number of stations from 18 to 41 and bikes from 123 to 286. With the additional stations and bikes came an increased cost recovery ratio – the percentage of revenues divided by expenses. Fiscal Year 2011 had a 53% cost recovery ratio and FY12 saw an increase to 64%.

Arlington’s portion of the service had $411,000 in revenues from memberships, user fees, and sponsorships and $473,000 in operations expenses, plus $170,000 in management and marketing – totaling $643,000 in expenses. The number of trips starting and ending in Arlington increased by about 280% to 88,613 (trips starting) and 86,438 (trips ending). The number of miles ridden in Arlington increased 343% to about 95,000 miles, which helped remove nearly 64,000 pounds of CO2 from the air. The service also got us more active and we burned over 4.1 million calories to be fit.

The report also discusses our accomplishments, such as our partnership with Bank on DC, Transit Development Plan, map panels design updated, marketing campaign, and call center improvements. The report can be found online at BikeArlington.com (PDF, 1 MB, Adobe Reader required).

More than two thirds of all bike/car crashes happen at intersections. As a bicyclist, it’s critical to know what you can do to stay visible, predictable and safe when approaching, navigating and leaving an intersection, whether you turn or go straight through.

1. When approaching an intersection, ride in the center of the rightmost lane that will take you the direction you want to go—right lane for turning right, left lane for turning left, etc.

2. Check behind you, then use hand signals to indicate that you are changing lanes or turning.

3. Make eye contact with drivers around you to ensure that they have noticed you—communication is key!

4. When stopped at an intersection, do so in the center of the lane—either in front of or behind a car—to ensure that you are seen by the driver. Don’t wait off to the side, where they may not be looking.

5. Drivers are often unable to estimate the speed of bikes and think they have enough time to make a turn. Keep an eye on drivers traveling in the opposite lane and turning left across your path.

This is just one tip for safer cycling, but the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) is a wellspring of more useful information. Make them your go-to resource for safety tips, bike classes, events and more at waba.org.

(Washington, D.C.) Today, Capital Bikeshare celebrates its second birthday, marking the end of a very successful year that saw the addition of more stations in the District and Arlington, and most recently, the City of Alexandria. Alexandria kicked off the birthday celebration with an official Launch Party on Wednesday, and today it is Capital Bikeshare Day, by proclamation, in both DC and Arlington.

We’re very excited to announce that eight Capital Bikeshare stations are now operational in the City of Alexandria! 

These station locations include:

• Prince St. & Union St.
• King St. & N Royal St.
• King St. & S Patrick St.
• Commerce St. & S Fayette St.
• N Saint Asaph St. & Pendleton St.
• N Henry St. & Pendleton St.
• Braddock Road Metro
• King Street - Old Town Metro

The City will hold a launch event on Wednesday, September 19 at 11:45 a.m. in front of Alexandria City Hall in Market Square at 301 King Street to celebrate their shiny new stations! 

We are thrilled with the progress the Capital Bikeshare program has made over the last two years and look forward to working with additional jurisdictions to expand even more!

Though it is illegal for drivers and passengers to open their doors into traffic – and bikes are traffic – you don’t want to rely on others for your safety. Follow these tips to avoid getting “doored.”

1. The 3-5 feet to the left of parked cars is called the “Door Zone.” Vehicle doors vary in length, and you should ride outside of the door zone as much as you can.

2. Riding outside of the “Door Zone” has the added benefit of making you more visible to drivers in front of and behind you.

3. Be aware of passenger vehicles (taxis and buses) and always pass on the left to avoid conflicts with drivers entering or exiting the roadway.

4. Use a bell (or your voice) to communicate with drivers and passengers who are opening their doors.

Remember, it’s a two-way street. When you are the driver or passenger in a car, always check behind the vehicle for approaching bikes before opening your door – it’s the law!

This is just one tip for safer cycling, but the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) is a wellspring of more useful information. Make them your go-to resource for safety tips, bike classes, events and more at waba.org.

Starting Monday, August 27, Capital Bikeshare will begin the process of installing eight stations in the City of Alexandria.  These station locations include:

• Prince St / Union St
• King St / N Royal St
• King St / S Patrick St
• Commerce St / S Fayette St
• N Saint Asaph St /Pendleton St
• N Henry St / Pendleton St
• Braddock Road Metro
• King Street – Old Town Metro

It is important to note that these stations will not be operational until the deployment and installation of all eight stations in Alexandria is complete, tentatively scheduled for early September.  These stations will not be available to pick up or return bikes to until that time.  These stations will not appear on the CaBi online map or on Spotcycle until they are fully operational. 
Please visit Alexandriava.gov/localmotion

While riding well can prevent crashes, they can still happen in spite of your skill on a bike. Wearing a bike helmet is the most effective way to ensure that if a crash happens, you will survive it. Please keep these five things in mind when thinking about purchasing a helmet:

1. Every helmet sold in the US meets the same safety standards. Spending $200 might get you a cooler helmet, but it won’t get you one that keeps your head safer.

2. However, a helmet won’t help if it doesn’t fit you correctly. Take these steps to put your helmet on right:

• Place the helmet level on your head, not too far forward or back. The brim should be about two fingers’ width above your eyebrows.
• The side straps should come to a V just below your earlobes.
• The chinstrap should be snug under your chin. When you open your mouth wide, you should feel the helmet tug down on the top of your head.
• The helmet shouldn’t wobble or shake when you move your head.

3. Helmet laws vary by location: people under 16 must wear helmets in DC and MD, under 14 in VA.

4. Helmets are good for one crash only! Additionally, they need to be replaced every 4-6 years whether you have been involved in a crash or not.

5. On a bike, you can avoid many crashes by paying attention and riding visibly & predictably. But you can’t control or avoid everything, and when a crash happens, a bike helmet is your last line of defense. Don’t ride without it!

This is just one tip for safer cycling, but the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) is a wellspring of more useful information. Make them your go-to resource for safety tips, bike classes, events and more at waba.org.

To date, ninety Capital Bikeshare bikes have been found by service staff to have a broken steering limiter tab and removed from service.  The tab is a small piece of metal that is part of the steerer tube and which runs in a narrow channel on the top of the fork crown.  The tabs are there to give the bike better stability when the kick stand is down, prevent damage to the frame from over-steering, and protect the wiring in the head tube.  Our mechanics have discovered that sometimes this tab breaks and needs to be removed.  Since the launch of the system, all bikes that have been found to have a steering limiter tab problem have been removed from service pending a solution from the bike manufacturer.

The solution recently became available after rigorous testing to ensure that Capital Bikeshare riders will see no difference in the performance or quality of the bikes. The black buttons that can be found on some of the bikes on both sides of the downtube are designed to serve the same purpose as the steering limiter tab.  We are in the process of applying this solution to all bikes that have been found to have steering tab issues.  Capital Bikeshare will continue to monitor the fleet and any additional bikes that are found to have the steering tab issue will also receive the solution.

Plentiful and bright, street lights make it easy to ride after dark on city streets. But equipping your bike with front and rear lights isn’t always about seeing the road in front of you, it’s also about being seen by others. Capital Bikeshare bikes have lights built in, but you can use these tips with your own bike and to help other bicyclists be seen at night:

1. DC, Maryland and Virginia laws require white front lights on all bikes. A rear red light and/or red reflector is also required.
2. It never hurts to add more lights to your bike or to your bag/helmet!
3. If you are riding on an off-street trail (such as the Mount Vernon Trail) without overhead lighting, you may need to invest in a headlamp or other powerful light to illuminate the trail.
4. You can supplement your lights with brightly colored clothing and retro-reflective material on your helmet, gloves, legbands, and jacket.
5. Lights can keep you visible even during the day, and they’re especially helpful in the dawn/dusk, as well as in the rain.
6. Remember to pack extra batteries for longer rides! (Also, batteries drain faster in the cold.)

This is just one tip for safer cycling, but the the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) is a wellspring of more useful information. Make them your go-to resource for safety tips, bike classes, events and more at waba.org.

It’s smart to be a proactive rider, but you can also make a big difference in your bike safety by simply riding in a straight line! Riding smoothly without unnecessary drifting or swerving is one of those basic bike skills that is easy to dismiss, but can do a lot to increase your visibility, your predictability, and ultimately your safety:

1. When you ride in a straight line, drivers (and other cyclists) expect that you will continue to do so. Being predictable keeps you safer.

2. Ride outside of the door zone and stay there. No swerving means no worrying about car doors.

3. Resist the temptation to move to the right when there are no parked cars. Sure, it can be a relief to get out of traffic, but you are making yourself harder to see and predict.

4. To change lanes or make turns, remember your hand signals. Signal early and often. Back up your signals with eye contact and make your intentions clear.

5. If you find yourself swerving when looking over your shoulder, practice your technique in an empty parking lot.

This is just one tip for safer cycling, but the the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) is a wellspring of more useful information. Make them your go-to resource for safety tips, bike classes, events and more at waba.org.

We are thrilled to be quickly approaching an enormous milestone here at Capital Bikeshare—2 million trips taken! We can’t thank our members enough for believing in this service and it has truly been amazing to see the type of impact that a transit system like Capital Bikeshare can have on a community.

When riding your bike, either in the street or on the sidewalk, you are obligated to follow all appropriate laws as they relate to pedestrians, bikes and automobiles. This starting point allows all users of the road to be safe and respectful of each other.

In our efforts to continually improve the Capital Bikeshare service for our members, several adjustments have been made to our Bicycle Rental Agreement.  We invite you to review the document.

For any questions you may have, please call us at 1-877-430-BIKE(2453) or email customerservice@capitalbikeshare.com.  Thank you for your support!

When you’re on your bike, communicating with drivers can seem like an impossible task. But with a little thought and some practice, you can let drivers know what you are going to do before you do it, making yourself more predictable and safer. Use hand signals and body language to get your message out there:

1. For turns, simply hold out your arm in the direction you want to turn. You can also signal a right turn by holding your left arm out and bent up at the elbow.
2. Remember, bikes don’t have brake lights, so signal your stops by holding either arm out and bent down at the elbow. This is especially helpful on off-street trails.
3. Add motion to your signals! Movement attracts attention, so flex at the wrist or elbow as you make your hand signal.
4. Earlier is better, so try to signal your turns half a block or 500 feet before an intersection, whichever is further away.
5. For lane-changes, point at the lane you are moving into, so drivers don’t think you are turning off the roadway completely.
6. Don’t stop there: make eye contact, wave, smile and use other body language to communicate your intentions to drivers. If they can predict your actions, you stay safer.

This is just one tip for safer cycling, but the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) is a wellspring of more useful information. Make them your go-to resource for safety tips, bike classes, events and more at waba.org

In our efforts to continually improve the Capital Bikeshare service for our members, several adjustments have been made to our Bicycle Rental Agreement.  We invite you to review the document.

For any questions you may have, please call us at 1-877-430-BIKE(2453) or email customerservice@capitalbikeshare.com.  Thank you for your support!

Perhaps you already know that you aren’t supposed to ride against traffic on a bicycle, but do you know the reason behind the rule? By riding against traffic, you are putting yourself in a dangerous situation and reducing the odds that you will be seen by motorists. Riding against traffic is not safe for these reasons:

Just in time for the holidays, the Georgetown BID brings you 12 Days of Merriment in Georgetown, and Capital Bikeshare is thrilled to be part of it! Come celebrate DC’s most anticipated holiday shopping season, with 12 days of special store sales and events, dining treats, holiday entertainment and activities and more. From December 9 through 20, holiday treats exclusively for Capital Bikeshare members are waiting for you all over the neighborhood.

Celebrating our first birthday was fun, but now we’re ready to focus on the future of Capital Bikeshare— and it looks pretty promising. After several public meetings and the help of a crowdsourcing map, which enabled members to submit their preferences for new station locations, we finally decided where to place the first new stations in the District and Arlington County. Keep in mind that these locations were chosen based upon the feedback we received from Capital Bikeshare members. So, if your favorite station location didn’t make the list, just wait—many more are in the pipeline for the coming year.

We want to hear where you would like to see future Capital Bikeshare stations!  To accommodate this, we have devised a nifty crowdsourcing map that allows you to suggest a station (or many stations), view and comment on other people’s suggestions, and share it all through your email and social media networks.

Thank you to everyone who provided input on the County’s proposed FY12 Capital Bikeshare (CaBi) station locations in the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor. We received over 300 comments from the public through our online interactive map, public meeting, civic association meetings, and emails. In addition to input in favor of certain stations, we also received helpful input of unfavored stations. With these comments, we’re able to better locate future CaBi stations to better meet demand and neighborhoods’ needs.

Beginning June 1, 2011, Capital Bikeshare annual members were encouraged through our Reverse Riders Rewards to assist in the redistribution of bicycles across Downtown DC. Prizes were available to members who took a bicycle from a “typically full station” and dropped it off at a “typically empty station” Mondays through Fridays between the hours of 8am and 10am. One point was rewarded for each qualifying trip. The stations that are eligible were plotted on our very fancy Google map.  Full details on the current contest are available here.

On Monday, July 4^th, Capital Bikeshare will be providing two bike corrals to handle the large number of riders expected to use the system to visit the National Mall for the 4^th of July celebrations.  The bike corrals will be located at the following stations:

A public meeting to discuss the expansion of the Capital Bikeshare program in the District of Columbia took place on May 25. The meeting lasted approximately two hours and was attended by 124 community members interested in learning more about the District Department of Transportation’s (DDOT) proposed station locations and providing their own feedback on where they would like to see the next round of stations.

Capital Bikeshare is expanding throughout the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor and the Arlington County Department of Environment Services would like public input about the proposed station locations as well as suggestions for locations. About 30 stations are proposed for the Rosslyn, Courthouse, Clarendon, Virginia Square, and Ballston urban villages within the next year.

Last month, goDCgo and The World Bank teamed up to launch the Capital Bikeshare corporate program in style! In one day, goDCgo sponsored four Confident City Cycling classes at The World Bank headquarters, reaching over 100 new and not-so-new bike commuters.

Due to construction on the 11th Street bridge, we will be temporarily removing the CaBi station at 1800 Martin Luther King Blvd (at the intersection of MLK and Good Hope Road, SE) on Friday morning, April 29th, 2011.

In our efforts to continually improve the Capital Bikeshare service for our members, several adjustments have been made to our Bicycle Rental Agreement.  We invite you to review the document.  For any questions you may have, please call us at 1-877-430-BIKE(2453) or email customerservice@capitalbikeshare.com.  Thanks for your membership!

Currently a CaBi member and wanting to get in on the Living Social deal?  No problem!  Use the code to renew your membership!

We’ll be posting the final Winter Weather Warrior contest results on goDCgo.com on Tuesday March 8.  Results will include our Long Haul Rider and Most Saddle Time Rider for February, the faithful CaBi members with perfect attendance, and the supreme Warrior.  Stay tuned and check goDCgo.com for the full results.

Check out the full Winter Weather Warrior leader board to see where you stand and for details on the contest.  You can still opt-in and join the competition.  Updated February 9, 2011.

Check out the full Winter Weather Warrior leader board to see where you stand and for details on the contest.  You can still opt-in and join the competition.  Updated February 2, 2011.

January has been cold and bleak. Yuck-o. Time to get your creative juices flowing again. So we’re announcing today a photo contest for everyone participating in Capital Bikeshare’s Winter Weather Warrior contest!  Winner will receive a $100 gift card to Ruth’s Chris Steak House.

Due to DDOT roadway construction on Nannie Helen Burroughs Avenue, NE, we will be temporarily removing the CaBi station at the intersection of Nannie Helen Burroughs and Minnesota Avenues on Tuesday morning, January 4th, 2011.

Safety is extremely important to Capital Bikeshare, therefore Capital Bikeshare may temporarily suspend service in times of severe weather.  If severe weather endangers user safety, Capital Bikeshare will close temporarily and no bikes can be rented.  All bikes already in use at the time of closure can be returned to any Capital Bikeshare station with an available open slot and all user fees still apply.  The system will re-open when conditions are determined safe for operations.