BikeLNK marks official launch with celebration

BikeLNK is celebrating their official launch Friday with a celebration to honor Lincoln’s first bike share system.

The festivities will start at the Lincoln Community Foundation Gardens at 4 pm where sponsors and BikeLNK supporters will share remarks.

Speakers at the event include Barb Bartle, Lincoln Community Foundation; Dave Cary, City of Lincoln; Kush Abdulleov, Spreetail; Michelle Waite, University of Nebraska-Lincoln; Todd Ogden, Downtown Lincoln Association.

A celebratory ride will follow remarks as riders utilize the BCycles to head down the N-Street cycling track to the Railyard. The party at the Railyard will include informational booths, food catered by Mellow Mushroom, and lots of fun. The BCycle event will be followed by the Earthstock Music Festival featuring Mesonjixx and Twinsmith.

BikeLNK had over 316 rides during the first ten days of the soft launch period and is already cruising towards success in Lincoln.

With ride options starting at a $3 QuickTripper (a single 30-minute ride) to $80 for Aluminum Access (a year of unlimited 30-minute rides) there are many ways locals & visitors alike can take advantage of BikeLNK.

Barb Bartle of the Lincoln Community foundation sees a bright future for the system as, “Using traditional transportation – the bicycle – merged with the latest innovation, BikeLNK brings a wonderful new asset to our city to be utilized and enjoyed by citizens and visitors alike. We envision BikeLNK being one more strength that builds a great city.”

Ronnie Green, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Chancellor, is excited about the program, especially the students’ role in the development of the program, “We’re proud that University of Nebraska students led the initiative to bring BikeLNK to the city. The result of their efforts is a program that will be a great enhancement to campus and the entire Lincoln community.”

Kush Abdulleov, People & Culture at Spreetail, is a passionate supporter of the project, "We're excited to be a part of bringing the BikeLNK bike share system to life in our community. Revolutionizing the communities we touch by creating new opportunities that don't already exist through betterment projects like this is one of the reasons why we do what we do here at Spreetail."

BikeLNK is a program of the City of Lincoln and was funded by federal funds through the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) program. Local sponsors Spreetail, Lincoln Community Foundation, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Nebraska provided matching funds to ensure the program’s successful delivery.

The program is managed by Heartland Bike Share operator of Heartland BCycle in Omaha. The equipment is provided by BCycle LLC, a Wisconsin based bike sharing company. Lincoln joins Las Vegas, Los Angeles and Philadelphia in using BCycle’s 2.0 bikes and stations. The 2.0 next-generation station features an intuitive kiosk and an updated aesthetic design while the 2.0 bicycle is lighter than the first-generation bike. All BCycle bikes are designed by Waterloo, Wisconsin-based Trek.

For more information about BikeLNK and to sign up to become a member, please visit the website at BikeLNK.com. You can also connect with BikeLNK on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter and all users are encouraged to share their stories with the hashtag “#bikeLNK”