David Starkop/Office of Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa/Flickr/Creative Commons

CicLAvia participants, October 9, 2011.

What will it take to get Angelenos out of their cars? Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is betting on more bikes. The mayor helped kick off last weekend’s CicLAvia event by announcing the city’s new bike-share program, to be rolled out over the next eighteen to twenty-four months. The $16-million dollar program will place approximately 4000 bicycles at 400 bike rental stations in four Los Angeles neighborhoods – downtown, Hollywood, Venice Beach and Westwood. The bikes will be available to rent for anywhere from $1.50 an hour to $6 a day, with a year-pass costing $75. No city funds were spent on the program; instead, a company called Bike Nation has put up the capital in return for a 10-year operating contract.

WEIGH IN

Is access to more bikes really enough to change Angelenos’ commuting habits? And were some neighborhoods left out of the first phase of the plan that should have been included?

Guest:

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who announced the bike-share program at CicLAvia on Sunday

Navin Narang, founder, Bike Nation, a bicycle sharing company