It’s new. It’s the SFO FlyCycle SoBi program from Social Bicycles.
Here are some of the bikes parked at SFO these days…
…and here is a short video explaining the program. Note the drive shaft instead of a chain:
I’ll tell you, what Social Bicycles calls a headlight and a taillight aren’t all that bright.
And I’ll tell you, the helmet issue goes unaddressed.
And I’ll tell you, the reservation system looks cumbersome / unnecessary.
And how much this program costs us and how much it gets used, that’s also a mystery.
These bikes would get thrashed in San Francisco proper, say parked at 6th and Market, but they appear to be pretty safe in the San Francisco part of San Mateo County.
Meet the Team:
Ryan Rzepecki, CEO
Ryan has a B.S. in Marketing from Penn State University and a Masters in Urban Planning from Hunter College. The bicycle has been his primary mode of transportation for the last four years, and bicycle advocacy has been both his passion and profession. Prior to developing SoBi, Ryan worked for the NYC Department of Transportation in the bicycle program. At the DOT, he sited bike racks, edited the bike map, conducted field research on bike facilities, and organized cycling promotions.
Nick Foley, Product Design
Nick is a designer and bike mechanic who loves how bicycles make life more efficient. He studied industrial design at Pratt Institute where he experimented with bicycles that were optimized for ‘non-cyclist’ commuters. Nick gets excited about using design to make urban infrastructure more sustainable, and creating objects that return a sense of wonder to everyday activities.
Marcin Pyla, Software Development
Marcin has 10 years of experience building websites, applications, and start-ups. He is currently founder and CEO of Leftbrain where he manages the 5 developers working for Social Bicycles. He oversees all software development including embedded Linux, Ruby on Rails, iOS, and Android.
Justin Willey, Business Development
Justin has a B.S. in Environmental Science, Policy, and Management from UC Berkeley. In 2009, he received a number of grants to establish a bike share and bicycle shop at UC Berkeley. Justin has since been involved in planning, designing, implementing, and managing bike share systems around the country. Justin is excited by the opportunity to transform the urban landscape through bicycles.
Patrick T. Hoffman, Project Management
Patrick is a LEED AP and has a Bachelor of Architecture from Drexel University in Philadelphia and a M.S. in Urban Planning from Columbia University in the City of New York. He is an experienced Project Manager and has managed complex design, construction, research and product development projects involving public and private partners. Patrick is passionate about empowering people to create dynamic and vibrant communities.
WELL, THAT’S YOUR OPINION, ISN’T IT, WILLIE? HEY, HOW’S IT GOING WITH RENAMING 3RD STREET “WILLIE L BROWN, JR BOULEVARD” THE WAY YOU SO DESPERATELY WAN?. YOU KNOW, LIKE THIS:
WELL GEE, WHY WAS THAT? WAS IT DUE TO HOMOPHOBIA? NO. SEXISM? NO. RACISM? HEY THAT MUST BE IT, RIGHT? ALL RIGHT, GO ON, WILLIE.
If it makes the ballot and loses, it will be a disservice to Harvey’s memory.
NO IT WON’T. HEY, REMEMBER WHEN YOU WANTED TO RENAME SFO THE WILLIE L BROWN JR INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT? HEY, THAT IDEA BOMBED TOO, RIGHT? BUT I’D BET YOU’D BE WILLING TO TAKE THE CHANCE ON A BALLOT, WOULDN’T YOU? YOU’RE LYING AGAIN, AREN’T YOU?
It will only create divisions within the city. Not because Milk was gay, but because renaming the airport after him makes no sense.
WELL, I DON’T KNOW. IT CERTAINLY WOULD MAKE SOME SENSE. THE QUESTION IS ABOUT WEIGHING THE PROS AND CONS.
Moscone Center is named after Mayor George Moscone because he negotiated the deal with various factions to get the place built, and a lot of low-income housing along with it.
OR MAYBE THE VOTERS WILL DECIDE AND THE “WHOLE CITY FAMILY” WILL JUST HAVE TO DEAL, HUH?
THAT’S THE WAY THINGS ARE GOING NOW. C’MON, THINK. HEY, WHAT ABOUT THAT LETTER HARVEY WROTE TO JIMMY CARTER? WHY DON’T YOU PUBLICIZE THAT? OR GET BEHIND SOME OTHER CANDIDATE? CAUSE, RIGHT NOW, THE WILLIE BROWN ED LEE POLITICAL FACTION IS LOSING ON THIS ONE.
PS: Oh, and what would the new IATA code be? MLK? Well, that code is already taken, by someplace in Montana. And also, well, MLK, just don’t go there, girlfriend. If you wanted to say something like “SFO, An International Airport from Harvey Milk” or something like that, the damage would be lessened.
I don’t know, is this a thank you for all the fed money we’re getting for the wasteful Central Subway?
Perhaps.
Next stop, Willie L. Brown Jr. Boulevard!
Thank you, drive through.
Uh, shouldn’t we wait until people die before honoring their legacy?
I think so.
Otherwise you end up with something like Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti International Airport, with Uday Terminal and Qusay Terminal, right?
(Incidentally, Willie Brown was behind a push to change the name of SFO to Willie Brown International back in the 1990′s. I’m srlsy. Then the airport people came back with a study showing how the IATA code letters SFO constituted one of the world’s best-known “brands.” So that was the end of that proposal. But the impulse is the same, in’nt? The desire to have one’s name all over the place, statues, busts and the like. How sad!)
Thusly, right at the entrance to International Arrivals:
Click to expand
And thusly:
I should add that it would help if you had a Rolls Royce, and if your license plate had no letters* on it, and if you had a chauffeur to keep an eye on the car…
**Someday, I’ll be special. (I’m a driver, I’m a winner. Things are gonna change, I can feel it.) In the meantime I’ll just have to circle around powered by my straight-outta-Toyota-City 2UZ-FE V-8 with hypereutectic pistons, you know, an engine from this century. The one what will surely outlive whichever visiting comrade happened to be coming in from Moscow on this particular day…
WiFi has not replaced these pay phones, not yet anyway.
Hey, remember that State of the City address from that former Mayor / Willie Brown appointee, you know, the one who promised free WiFi for the entire 415?
I do. It was like six years ago. (Hey, how’s that working out? Not well, last time I checked.)
Anywho, we now have a new Mayor / Willie Brown appointee, you know, the one who promised that Twitter would pay for Twitterloin-area WiFi, you know, instead of paying its fair share of taxes.
(Hey, how’s that working out? Nothing so far.)
Anywho, in anticipation, out go the famous pay phones at the corner of 6th and Market:
Click to expand
Nowadays if you want to make a phone call and you don’t have a cellie, you’ll have to buy a stolen iPhone the next block over.
And maybe, just maybe, we’ll get fee citywide WiFi from the next Mayor / Willie Brown appointee, perhaps around 2020.
Yesterday, owing to the unusual winds what blew away* the fog, I saw jumbo jets above S.F. in places where I normally don’t, but I couldn’t really hear them. (I guess jets have gotten a lot quieter these days.)
Like this low-flying United Air 747-400 near the Ferry Building – you could hardly hear it:
There I was monitoring recent Zeppelin activity over the 415 and what do I see but an old-school Allegiant Air McDonnell Douglas DC9 / MD80 / MD85 / MD90 / whatever flying out of OAK.
See?
Click to expand
You can buy a used jetliners with ancient low-bypass engines for as cheap as $4,000,000 and then start up an airline? Did not know that.
