BUFFALO, N.Y. — As warmer weather is on its way, one local organizations that helps bring bike riding options to Buffalo and Niagara Falls is making plans for the summer season.
Reddy Bikeshare is expanding into State Parks in Niagara Falls. Following a record breaking season last year, Reddy Bikeshare is entering its eighth season with a total of 113 stations.
Seven new stations have been added in the Niagara Falls area at Whirlpool, Devil’s Hole, DeVeaux Woods, and Niagara Falls state parks.
Reddy Bikeshare provided more details about the station locations:
- Niagara Falls State Park
- Goat Island: Near the Cave of the Winds visitors center
- Cataract House Park: Corner of Buffalo Ave. and Old Main St. Available now.
- Riverway: Parking area near the 1st St. Bridge to Goat Island
- Niagara Gorge Discovery Center: Adjacent to park information and restrooms. Available now.
- Whirlpool State Park: Gorge-level parking area near park pavilion. Available now.
- DeVeaux Woods State Park: Along park loop road across from baseball diamond. Available now.
- Devil’s Hole State Park: Gorge-level parking area accessible from the Niagara Scenic Pkwy. Available now.
In the record-breaking season last year, Reddy Bikeshare members logged 47,254 trips, which is a 21% increase from previous record set in 2021.
“Seven years ago, the Reddy Bikeshare program was a new and novel idea in Western New York to encourage a healthy, leisurely activity and also an environmentally friendly means of transportation. Today, Reddy Bikeshare is an integral part of our community and adding a footprint inside the state park system is going to further enrich the experience of Western New York’s greatest natural asset for both residents and visitors alike,” said Kathy Glieco, Vice President, Marketing at Independent Health.
“With strong local roots, Independent Health is truly committed to creating a culture of health in Western New York, and programs like Reddy Bikeshare have a direct and measurable impact on improving the health and wellbeing of our community.”
The Niagara River Greenway Commission helped make the three stations along the Shoreline Trail possible.
“Now with the Niagara Gorge Rim Trail complete, we are looking for more ways to ‘activate the trail’ and make it easier for the community to use,” said Greg Stevens, Director of the Niagara River Greenway Commission.
“Reddy Bikeshare is helping to make this happens by providing shared use bicycles located at key trail nodes from Niagara Falls north to the Ralph Wilson Trailhead at Devil's Hole, just across the road from Niagara University.”
New this season is a Pay-As-You-Go pass that doesn't expire. This pass replaces the Two-Day pass. The Pay-As-You-Go pass will cost $3 to sign up and 10 cents per minute of biking.
“Our Team’s first priority has been catalyzing an active lifestyle using Reddy Bikeshare,” said Simon Husted, Reddy’s communications and marketing coordinator.
“With Pay-As-You-Go, now people can pedal without worrying about how many more hours they have left before their pass expires.”
The annual pass cost will also be lowered to $40 from $55. Pass holders pay one penny per minute of biking.
“At a time when prices of seemingly everything are going up, we want to do right by our community and help make biking more affordable” Husted said.
In the works is also a fleet of electric pedal-assisted bikes. More details about the new fleet will be available later in the season.
“Electric mobility is the future and our Reddy Team is excited to bring e-bikes to Western New York,” said Mitch LaRosa, Chief Development Officer for Shared Mobility Inc, the nonprofit organization that operates Reddy Bikeshare.
“Building on e-bike pilot activities in 2021 and 2022, we look forward to offering an innovative, safe, and accessible way to get around and stay active.”
