The Irresistable Value & Convenience of Bike-share

Nice quick read about bike-share from a formerly skeptical, and now devoted fan of Capital Bikeshare:

Cut to a year later, and I now recognize that the beauty of Capital Bikeshare lies not in how different or new the concept is but rather in how incredibly useful and easy it is to use. It seems likely that Steve Jobs, arguably the king of innovators, would have approved of Capital Bikeshare’s ability to become a break-out hit that consumers didn’t even know they wanted it in the first place.

The key, it seems to me, seems to be in the Tribbles-like way Capital Bikeshare stations have proliferated around the Washington D.C. region. That and the service’s 24-hours-per-day availability give CaBi an advantage (for short trips at least) over bus and rail. Likewise, CaBi’s flexibility in allowing for one-way trips (a must during inclement weather) gives it an advantage over bike ownership.

You should read the whole thing.