Number of missing Bixis climbs to 50

[Oyez Oyez]

Number of missing Bixis climbs to 50

par Oyez Oyez » Dim Juin 28, 2009 4:00 pm

"So A friend was looking out his window the other night, and he saw near the Bixi racks [at Mt-Royal and Parc] a group of six kids. He said they looked up to no good. Sure enough, they ran up to the racks, pulled each of the six bikes up and out, and rode away on them laughing."

That's an anecdote from a friend of mine late this week, and it comes in the wake of a surfacing concern - call it the end of the honeymoon? - that Bixi bikes are being nabbed, and perhaps because of a poor locking design.

Andy Riga of the Gazette's Metropolitan News blog with a report about Bixi vandalism, but spokesperson Michel Philibert contended there was no more vandalism or theft than Stationnement Montreal had expected. He would not number the amount of stolen or vandalised bikes, but said that “maybe one or two” of the stolen bikes are still unaccounted for.

But by the end of this week, a different picture: CBC News reported that Philibert has admitted that about of Bixi bikes are unaccounted for.

It has become clear that Stationnement Montreal are less than excellent with PR, and so it is reader comments that are driving the truth on this story. One (from the CBC story linked above):

Now let's get something out in the open, those of us who use this
system regularly know the locking mechanism fails 3 out of every 10
times.

When I hear things like "people are vandalising the locking
mechanism", why is it I think the company making these are looking for
someone to blame for their design failures.

And another:

I have been a Bixi subscriber for one month now. On two
different occasions, I took out a bike and returned it to another
station in a timely matter, docked it and waited for the green light to
confirm that it was locked. Both times, the Bixi system did not
recognize that the bike had been returned, due to a technical issue
with the docking station. I was repeatedly assured by customer service
that I would not be charged for the bikes but just a couple of days
ago, I checked my statement in my account on their website and have
found over 2000$ in charges. Bixi is holding me liable for 1000$ for
each "missing" bike until it is found, even though I returned the bikes
properly. Their user contract indicates that you can obtain a receipt
upon returning the bike, but when I tried to have one printed, the
machine wouldn't let me and customer service confirmed that this system
was not set up yet. It is a very stressful situation and I am very
frustrated by it!

Whatever this design failure, Philibert says that Stationnement Montreal has come up with a solution to add to every docking mechanism within a few weeks.

On a positive note, though, I think we can all agree that Bixi has truly changed the urban landscape here. There is a new, yet already familiar "blink" on the bike paths; downtown it seems like every third bike is a Bixi. This program is clearly doing some heavy lifting toward getting more - and more different - people using bikes that might not have otherwise. Many in the Hasidic Jewish community around Outremont seem to have taken a liking; other friends whose bikes are poorly maintained have been happily using Bixi bikes simply because they are well-built.

Further, the bike stations have spread far east to Hochelaga-Maisonneuve and to the Iberville metro. I'd be very happy to see if Montreal can push even farther beyond the downtown core, and I bet that, once these kinks get worked out, they will. What about two or three along the Canal? Or maybe into Point St-Charles and Verdun?

Keep in mind as well: as has noted, Bécik Vert (below) is again available from the Mont Royal metro station - and it's free with a piece of ID, every day from 10 am to 7 pm. Truly, bikes are everywhere this summer.

[img:512:384]http://lh5.ggpht.com/_TVey1zSxcwc/SkfGiA6BHYI/AAAAAAAAASA/akCUC46-DCo/s512/100_6456.JPG[/img]


Author: kelabells
Category: newsInfrastructureBixi
Publish Date: Sat, 27 Jun 2009 17:27:00 GMT

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