Why Stephanie Rides

Stephanie had just commuted from Chelsea to her job in the Time-Life Building in Midtown, where she works in magazine publishing.

“I don’t have a bike at home – my co-op actually doesn’t allow them. It’s a walk-up and there was damage to the walls from people carrying bikes up and down so the board voted to ban them from the building. My parents live a few blocks away and I have a bike at their place, but it’s too far to use regularly.

“Before Citi Bike, I only really rode around recreationally on the weekends. This is my first week biking to work. The first day I took 10th Ave up and it wasn’t so great. Then I looked at the bike map and saw that 8th Ave has a separated bike lane, and that’s what I took today. The protected lanes make a huge difference.

“So yeah, it’s been great and I don’t know why some people are so upset about it. Some New Yorkers are so resistant to change! I’ve lived here my whole life, so I still remember the uproar over the MetroCard. Overall I think people are really excited about the bike-share. On the day it launched, my parents and I rode to the East Village to have dinner. Everybody was stopping us and asking questions. One angry guy yelled at me when I was docking the bike… but I also got a few high-fives.”