Cambridge Hubway stations to stay open through the winter

[sparr0.livejournal.com]

http://thehubway.com/news/2013/11/19/HubwayCambridgeWinterOperations

Almost all stations in Cambridge will remain operational throughout the winter, though the station at Lafayette Square/Main Street will be removed from the street for the season. The Lechmere station will be moved to the sidewalk just east of Lechmere Station. All station updates will be posted on the station map at www.thehubway.com/stations, www.hubwaytracker.com, and on the Spotcycle app for smart phones (www.spotcycle.net). Annual members may continue to use the Cambridge stations during the season at no additional cost. 24-hour, 3-day passes, and monthly passes will be available for purchase as usual.

As part of the pilot program, snow removal will become part of the daily responsibilities of the Hubway field team. The team, coordinated by Hubway’s dispatch office, is on the street from 6am to 10pm every day, and is stocked with equipment to keep stations clear of snow and ice.

Users should bear in mind that the regular seasonal closing of stations in Boston, Brookline, and Somerville city/town limits began on Monday, November 18th. Most stations will remain open through Wednesday, November 27th. Station closures are posted in advance on Hubway’s website at www.thehubway.com/news, on Twitter at www.twitter.com/hubway, and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Hubway.

During extreme inclement weather conditions, Hubway may temporarily close the system, and public announcements will be made via social media and the Hubway website. Station alerts will also be emailed to annual and monthly Hubway members, and all riders can consult the Spotcycle app to learn whether or not bicycles are available. In the event of a system closing, riders will be able to return bikes to all stations securely, but will not be able to check bikes out.

Comments

[ron_newman]

Unfortunately, Somerville is not following suit this year. At last night's Bicycle Committee meeting, I asked if the city could keep the Union and Davis stations open (since they are off-street), but the city hasn't budgeted for this so it won't happen.

[sparr0.livejournal.com]

budget? I was under the impression that Hubway paid the cities for the space their stations use.

[ron_newman]

I don't know details; drop a note to Sarah Spicer <sspicer@somervillema.gov> if you want more info. It may be that Cambridge has to pay Hubway to keep the stations clear of ice and snow.

If Cambridge's experiment is successful this winter, we can lobby for Somerville to join it next winter. One difference is that nearly all of Cambridge's stations are off-street, while a majority of Somerville's are on-street.

[hubidajubidaba.livejournal.com]

"If Cambridge's experiment is successful this winter, we can lobby for Somerville to join it next winter."

Definitely, here's hoping it is.

[boblothrope.livejournal.com]

Hubway gets very large subsidies from the state and local governments.

[hubidajubidaba.livejournal.com]

Define "very large".

[masswich.livejournal.com]

I haven't seen revenue numbers in a while but the Hubway system was started with a $3 million federal grant and about $1 million in state funds. Most of the balance is local funds, whether through ad sales, direct funding, or private sponsorships raised from cities. I believe revenue covers about 10-20% of costs, although that might have gone up since I stopped tracking it.

I'd be shocked if Cambridge isn't paying Alta a fair amount to keep the system running over the winter.