Bone up on your turning signals, Santa Monica: the first public bike share in Los Angeles County is set for its grand opening early next month. The full network will have 500 bright green bikes at 79 hubs around SaMo and part of Venice, says Santa Monica Next; an August test-run of 31 bikes at five hubs was so popular that operator Cyclehop extended the test period until the end of this month.
This month, Santa Monica signed a five-year agreement with Hulu that will put their logo all the bikes in exchange for $675,000 a year. The money will go toward helping pay for operational costs, as well as possibly funding "helmet dispensing kiosks," where riders could rent headgear for their trip.
The Los Angeles Metro's bike share is on the way, meanwhile, set to launch sometime in the middle of 2016 with a 65-bike pilot in Downtown LA, though the system will be incompatible with Santa Monica's (so riders won't be able to return a Santa Monica bike to a Metro hub, or vice versa).
Full bike share map via Santa Monica Next
· Santa Monica Announced Date for Full Breeze Bike Share Launch [SMN]
· Santa Monica's Bike Share Program to Be Sponsored By Hulu [Curbed LA]
· First Bike Share Program in LA Has Launched in Santa Monica [Curbed LA]