Self-service bicycles | The BIXI service victim of its popularity

BIXI has never been so popular in Montreal. Summer has barely begun and the organization has recorded a 40% increase in traffic compared to last year, in addition to two record days of 67,000 trips. But there is a downside: the enthusiasm is such that the service is, in some sectors, a victim of its popularity.

“We’re definitely going to smash all our records this year,” said BIXI Montréal’s general manager, Christian Vermette, in an interview with The Press. He describes this start to the season as “completely crazy”. “Last year, we had a 55% increase following the pandemic. Some return to normal was expected this year, with a more standard increase around 10%. But no, we are already at 40%. It is constantly increasing,” continues Mr. Vermette.

The number of daily trips is no stranger to this. Last year, the average peak was just over 50,000 trips. In comparison, last week, two days of more than 67,000 trips were recorded.

These increases come at a time when BIXI is carrying out a major update to its infrastructure, the largest in the past 15 years. Up to 3,000 anchor points are to be refurbished this year, while 2,000 others will be put into service gradually.

All this is in addition to the 1,000 self-service bicycles (VLS) that the City adds on average each year, recalls Mr. Vermette. “We have 414 who have arrived in the last few days that we are putting on the road. It’s huge as a daily operation, ”he explains.

Users facing empty stations

With the enthusiasm, however, come challenges related to the quality of service. The constant increase in traffic is not accompanied by sufficient efforts to improve the infrastructure of the service, deplore more and more users on social networks.

“I find it more difficult this summer. There are fewer terminals near my home, in the east of the Plateau, even though it is densely populated. Clearly, the number of anchor points is not high enough for the number of people,” illustrates Josiane Cossette, who has been using BIXI services for several years now. According to her, as soon as the morning rush hour passes, “it’s practically empty all day”.

A short-term reservation system could make the difference, adds the resident, who calls on BIXI Montreal to fill its stations at lower volumes to serve more sectors. “More turnover would greatly facilitate the situation. There, the terminals are literally empty before our eyes, ”she says.

On the BIXI Facebook page, a post by M^me Cossette was quickly shared by several others. “Same in Villeray. I love the concept of BIXIs, but these days, I sometimes do up to 3 stations before finding an available BIXI. And I arrive late for my appointments, ”added Julie Lemire. “This is one of the reasons why I shun the monthly subscription,” also raised Mathieu Duchesne.

“We try to follow”

Christian Vermette, he swears that his team is doing everything in its power to improve the situation. He acknowledges that in “certain sectors”, especially the Plateau-Mont-Royal and Rosemont, “some stations are empty in the morning”.

In order to avoid congestion in the stations, his group has just hired more staff to create “depot stations”. “It allows us to have people on site, at hot spots, who can at least put the bikes aside when the stations are not big enough”, illustrates Mr. Vermette.

For the rest, everything is a question of investments, according to the DG. “If we increase traffic by 40%, the equipment should theoretically follow the same rhythm. But it’s not always so obvious. The City has several other issues to manage. We adjust as best we can, we try to follow. »

“Out of 900 stations, it is certain that there will be empty ones and others full at times. People would like to always have a bike nearby, but it’s a bit impossible right now with 67,000 trips. […] We tell ourselves that soon, we will return to more normal growth of 10%. And until then, we continue to increase the offer,” concludes Christian Vermette.