ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — A local business is teaming up with the City of St. Augustine to get more people out of their cars and into the bike lanes.
By making biking more popular, officials hope is to cut down on congestion caused by vehicle and foot traffic.
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The city is partnering with Ian Guthrie’s bike rental business, DRIFTERS Beach and Bike Rentals, for the bike share program.
“This will kind of boost another initiative to really pump up the ease for pedestrian and bike right of ways,” said Guthrie.
Guthrie showed us some of the prototype bikes that’ll be wheeled out at next year’s launch.
The program also hopes to bring more business in for local shops. People will be able to rent the bikes and drop them off at 14 designated businesses.
Other suggested stops in the city will be mapped out for riders.
“A lot of these stations are also going to have docking locations at local businesses, so you won’t have to be going to those 14 key spots. You’ll be able to go straight to the door of a place where you want to eat, drink or shop,” said Guthrie.
He explained that renting and returning a bike will be as easy as connecting to a Bluetooth app on your phone and tapping a button to lock or unlock it.
Similar ride rental businesses in larger cities have taken criticism because of bikes and scooters being left scattered around. Guthrie said you won’t have to worry about that with the new program. Renters who try to ditch them will keep getting charged until they return it to a designated spot.
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“It’ll be tracked under your profile, and you can’t end your rental. It’s going to keep going until you confirm it’s locked up at a station,” said Guthrie.
The business is encouraging people to wear helmets and practice their own bike safety once the program officially rolls out, expected sometime in 2026.
Sponsor signage will also be advertised on the bike basket, the rental app, and website, as a way to support local businesses in the city.
For more information on the upcoming program, click here.
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