By now, I’m sure you have seen the throngs of baby blue bicycles around town. Their riders—many dressed more for a day in the boardroom than one cruising the lakefront—bop along to their favorite tunes on headphones or simply use the time on the road to take in all the sights that make our city fantastic. Chicago isn’t the first to introduce a bike sharing system, but in just three and a half short months, Divvy has become the busiest bicycle sharing program in the world, with more than 1 million miles logged by riders since the June 2013 launch.
Divvy may not have invented the bicycle, but they did, for many Chicagoans, re-invent the morning commute or afternoon errand routine. For less than a 30-Day Unlimited CTA pass, Divvy riders can buy an annual membership for just $75, receiving unlimited 30-minute rides for the whole year. With more than 240 bike stations scattered around Chicago (Divvy plans to bring this number to 400 by next spring), this new and innovative solution provides an easy and economical alternative for getting from Point A to Point B. And, to top it off, it’s eco-friendly, reducing the number of cars on the road and thusly, the amount of emissions. I love to see a solution that saves money and saves the earth. Divvy is the kind of innovation that truly succeeds; one in which all parties — the city, the people and the environment — all win.
