The Shortcomings of Citi Bike

By: Bakhtawar Bhurgari

Citi Bike has grown increasingly essential to New Yorkers in the past decade, but its service has been plagued with issues, impacting low-income neighborhoods the most, according to New York City’s comptroller.

A report by Brad Lander, the City’s comptroller, was released last week calling for an overhaul of Citi Bike’s contract as the popular rideshare service has become less reliable and diminished in quality since Lyft took over in 2018. 

Citi Bike’s riders have complained about unusable stations, lengthy outages, and broken bikes, especially affecting areas largely populated by Black and Latino communities and low-income residents. 

“Citi Bike has become a vital part of New York City’s transportation landscape,” Lander said. Citi Bike was a New Yorker’s best friend during the Covid-19 pandemic when transit ridership and vehicle traffic had significantly dropped. The rideshare service has successfully served as an alternative to subways and buses for commuters since, recording 30 million trips in 2022, five times more than when Citi Bike first launched in 2013.

While ridership has soared, maintenance has plummeted. Riders looking to return their bikes have found full docking stations, whereas others have come across empty stations or broken bikes. This is due to decreased “rebalancing” - the relocation of bikes from one station to another to ensure that docking stations and bikes operate with optimal availability. Rebalancing has dropped 80% since 2014, and it gets worse every year. 

The report highlighted that these issues are disproportionately higher at the outer edges of the system including Sunset Park, Crown Heights, Flatbush, and Fordham Heights, all of which are predominantly communities of color or low-income neighborhoods. Riders in the Bronx are 89% more likely to experience issues than riders in other boroughs, the report said. A 2019 study by McGill University similarly found that Citi Bike was benefiting richer, whiter neighborhoods and leaving behind New Yorkers of low income and color. 

Lander claims that the City has failed to enforce performance standards and does not exercise its authority to levy fines against Lyft, the rebalancing violations alone “amount to over $812,000 in uncollected fines.” 

Lyft has disputed some of the report’s claims, asserting that maintenance has not decreased. The rideshare company noted that the Bronx had the second-highest access in recent months, blaming previous issues on theft, and questioned the accuracy of the report's data which was mostly focused on June and July of 2023 instead of a more comprehensive timeframe. 

“A larger service area and unprecedented ridership, all in the wake of a global pandemic and shifting commuter landscape, have brought new challenges that require creative solutions," Jordan Levine, a Lyft spokesman, said in a statement. 

Lyft recently announced plans to double its fleet of Citi Bikes, while promising a major expansion and ensuring an equitable service that can best meet the high demand of riders across New York City.  Lyft is contractually obligated to maintain the quality and number of its fleet, but among other changes, Lander’s report also suggests an expansion of Citi Bike’s discounted membership program to “increase ridership in lower-income neighborhoods.”

Citi Bike ridership is at an all-time high, breaking records, and growing in popularity despite being plagued with persisting issues. Adherence to the City’s regulations and an updated system of working bikes and docking stations could ensure Citi Bike’s future as a vital component of New York City’s transportation network, and perhaps make it the leading commuting choice for all New Yorkers.