The Bluebikes program in Greater Boston has experienced unprecedented growth in recent years, with annual ridership climbing by 2.7 million from 2020 to 2024.
This surge is attributed to a variety of factors, including an expanded network of bike pickup stations, the introduction of e-bikes, and enhanced discount programs designed to make biking more accessible to residents.
Mandy Wilkens, a spokesperson for the Boston Cyclists Union, noted the program has grown in popularity ‘almost exponentially.’
Despite this growth, the increased usage of Bluebikes is less pronounced outside of the Boston city center and major college hubs.
Neighborhoods like Roxbury and Dorchester have shown significantly lower trip counts, raising concerns about unequal access to the bikeshare service.
An analysis of trip-level usage data from Bluebikes revealed that from January 2024 to May 2025, stations in areas such as Dorchester and Mattapan recorded fewer than 500 commuter trips.
In 2024, riders on the Bluebikes network logged more than 4.7 million trips across 13 municipalities, with Boston, Cambridge, and Somerville leading in usage rates.
Launched in 2011 with just 600 bicycles at 60 stations, Bluebikes has expanded to over 3,000 bikes and more than 400 stations throughout the metro area.
Wilkens attributed part of the recent rise in usage to the availability of e-bikes, which have opened the program to individuals with disabilities or other mobility challenges.
However, the disparity in ridership between densely populated areas and neighborhoods with lower urban density remains evident.
Galen Mook, executive director for MassBike, emphasized that for residents to engage more with the bikeshare program, the accessibility of bikes must improve.
‘If you have to walk 15 minutes to go get a bike share, you’re less incentivized to do it,’ Mook stated.
Boston is currently in the midst of a two-year initiative to add 100 new stations throughout the city, according to Kim Foltz, bikes director at the Boston Streets Cabinet.
The aim is to ensure that every resident lives within a five-minute walk of a Bluebikes station.
The busiest stations during peak commuting hours are located in Cambridge, primarily near Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
These stations reported over 40,000 trips during peak periods, largely due to steep discounts offered to students by the universities.
Bluebikes also provides a $60 membership for first-time residents and an annual $5 membership for low-income individuals, indicating that factors beyond cost are influencing ridership disparities.
Advocates point to systemic issues that hinder participation in low-use areas.
In particular, Wilkens highlighted a lack of safe biking infrastructure in neighborhoods like Roxbury, Mattapan, and Dorchester as a significant barrier.
Like any transportation option, safe biking infrastructure is essential for fostering usage and includes items such as separated bike lanes, protected intersections, and well-maintained roads.
These neighborhoods often find themselves distant from key commercial hubs, making biking to work less practical for residents.
Mook believes that Boston’s cycling strategy requires further investment and coordination to bridge existing gaps in the network.
‘We definitely need to connect networks of safe cycling corridors,’ Mook noted.
He stressed the importance of ensuring a fully contiguous network to encourage greater participation in the bike-sharing program.
Scooty Nickerson can be reached at [email protected].
image source from：bostonglobe
