My wife and I just returned from a vacation trip to Paris. We found the city to be full of interesting places to visit and the Parisians to be very friendly to Americans.

We enjoyed traveling about the city using the Metro subway, surface commuter trains and the Velib Bicycle system.

The purpose of the bike lending program is to reduce auto traffic and save energy.

In 2007, Paris installed hundreds of bike stations, in residential neighborhoods and central city locations.

There are more than 20,000 bikes available at low cost to the average user.

This is a system we could adapt to a community such as Catonsville.

Prior to the installation in Paris, the Velib-type system had been used successfully in Lyon and La Rochelle, France.

A popular bicycle lending plan needs to have lots of bikes available at all times.

Many Parisians use their credit cards to set up a Velib account that places a 150 Euro (about $225) hold on the subscriber's charge account for a one-year period.

This credit card account is used to deter theft and vandalism.

The subscribers then pay an annual fee of 29 Euros (about $44) for the bike rental plan.

As long as they return the bike to a Velib station after each use, there is no charge on the 150 Euro hold.

They are issued an electronic pass card that identifies them at each Velib payment station.

They then pick out a bike and have free use of the bike for up to 30 minutes.

We saw people of all walks of life using the Velib bikes.

The bikes are simple but sturdy three-speed models equipped with a front mounted metal basket to encourage neighborhood shopping. Each bike slides into a lock at the bike stand and can only be removed after proper electronic identification at the Velib station.

Catonsville would be a great community for such a bike lending system.

Baltimore County can apply for grants from either the U.S. Department of Transportation or Department of Energy to start the system.

Bike stations each containing 10 or so bikes could be placed at public locations such as the Catonsville Library, Catonsville Post Office, Hillcrest Elementary and Catonsville High schools and UMBC.

Business owners such as McDonald's, 7-Eleven, Catonsville Gourmet, the Shops on Mellor Avenue, Sam's Bagels and office buildings such as the Catonsville Professional Center could sponsor bike stations at their locations.

Businesses that sponsor the bikes could place advertising on them.

It would be important to also place bike stations in residential neighborhoods so patrons can easily walk from their home, select a bike and ride into the village and back.

The system would need to maintain bikes that are damaged and replace those that might be stolen.

Catonsville Bike Shop could be hired to maintain and redistribute the bikes.

If we installed 200 bikes in Catonsville, think of the automobile trips saved per day and increased patronage of businesses of Frederick and Edmondson avenues. This plan produces many positive benefits to the community:

* Low-cost transportation

* More business for local merchants

* Fewer automobiles on our roads

* More exercise for our population.

I will be interested to learn what other Catonsville and Baltimore County residents think of this idea.

Bob Oare

Catonsville

user comments (3)

user says...

Bob, I love the idea, it actually makes sense, however...there's always however, in today's ever expanding litigious environment I am certain that the county government wouldn't take on the liability that this may pose. Furthermore, in some areas, we currently do not have proper pathways for bikes and motor vehicles to share the road safely. Edmonson Ave westbound from Rolling road to the Trolley trail being the exception. (I'm sure there are few others)

Posted 9:42 PM, 12.15.09

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user jeffml1 says...

Bob, tremendous idea. Road sharing seems to be working well with "sharrows." Drivers appears to be responding well when they know that bicyclists are entitled to that 1/3 of the lane.

Posted 12:18 PM, 12.18.09

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user augieboy says...

Good point Jeffml1, maybe a public / private venture would work...as I still don't think the County would underwrite the liability...

Posted 5:19 PM, 12.18.09

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