Long Beach Getting Bike Share

A couple years ago, Street Films posted a video about how Long Beach (California) wanted to become the #1 Bike-Friendly City in the US. It's always good to aim high, but actions must follow words, and in this case, it looks like Long Beach is walking the talk. They've just announced that the privately-funded program was unanimously approved by the city council yesterday. It will include up to 250 kiosks and 2,500 bikes, with initial installations expected to begin in February of 2013 in downtown.

This will be done in partnership with Bike Nation:

Bike Nation announced earlier this year separate agreements with the cities of Los Angeles and Anaheim. Bike Nation customers can utilize any of the systems within the other Bike Nation communities at no additional charge. Last month, the Orange County-based company unveiled the first of 10 kiosks and 100 specially constructed bikes at a community event in Anaheim, with plans to install up to 40 kiosks and 400 bikes as demand warrants. The company also plans to begin rolling out the first of its 400 kiosks and 4,000 bikes in Downtown Los Angeles, Hollywood, Westwood and Venice Beach early next year.

The bikes will be chainless and feature active GPS technology and airless tires, reducing the need for on-road service. The kiosks are modular, portable, wirelessly connected and solar powered so that monitoring and load balancing is easily managed. Bike Nation’s kiosks, docks, station platforms and bikes are all manufactured in the United States.