Bike-Sharing In The Rivertowns? Maybe So

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October 26, 2024

By Jeff Wilson–

Local residents gathered in Tarrytown’s Warner Library on October 23 for a public feedback session about the prospect of adopting Project MOVER, an e-bike sharing program currently up and running in Ossining. The program is available there at no cost to the village and now being offered to Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow as well. (The Sleepy Hollow board had already passed a resolution to sign onto the project at its meeting the previous night.) The meeting at Warner, which was conducted by Tarrytown’s Assistant Village Administrator Alyssa Fasman and Sleepy Hollow Trustee Lauren Connell, consisted of a power point, video, Q&A, ending with a brainstorming session for input on the location of bike docking stations.

Several years ago, Ossining applied for and received a $7 million grant through the Electric Mobility Challenge, an initiative of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). The grant enabled Ossining – under the guidance of transportation consulting firm Nelson Nygard, and Drop Mobility, which runs the day-to-day operations and bike maintenance, to set up and share it with four other “incubator communities,” which also included Dobbs Ferry and Croton-on-Hudson. Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow are operating in tandem since they’re linked as closely as two municipalities can be.

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As for the e-bikes themselves, Fasman explained, their speed is capped at 15 miles per hour. It’s a pedal-assist bike, she explained, which may come as a rude awakening to lazy or unfit riders who expect the electric motor to do all the work. “If you’re going up a steep hill,” Fasman cautioned, “you’re still going to huff and puff a little bit. It’s not going to just take over for you.”

Riders use an app that bills their credit card, allowing them to unlock the bike from a docking station, ride the bike and return it to the same or another docking station. The “meter” keeps running until the bike is locked up again, so “there’s a financial incentive to return the bike,” advised Fasman. “Otherwise, you keep getting charged.” As for battery charging, that’s done in a warehouse in Ossining, enabling the docking stations to be small and streamlined, not bulky. Fasman urged residents to fill out the program survey, available online through a QR code. She also stressed that the Project MOVER is fully funded for two years; the villages can opt out at any time.

Residents are invited to complete a survey using the QR code

The 12-minute video, shot in Ossining and featuring one of its police officers, provided more detail about the program and the bikes. It costs one dollar to unlock a bike and 12 cents a minute to use it. The basket in front of the handlebars has holders for both phones and drinks. Riders are advised never ride on sidewalks and keep both hands on the handlebars except to signal. The officer didn’t mention helmets, but set an example by wearing one himself.

The meeting ended with a so-called “breakout session” where attendees studied maps and discussed the placement of docking stations in each village (set by the project’s administrators) and greenways—roads or streets designated as bike-friendly.

The Tarrytown Board of Trustees will hold a work session on October 30 to address results of the surveys and will vote on Project MOVER on November 4. “People complain about traffic,” said Daniel Convissor, Director of Bike Tarrytown and a vocal advocate for cycling. “So, if you don’t like traffic, Project MOVER provides another mobility option for people to get around without cars.”

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