New Yorkers looking to get back in a bike-share saddle were out of luck this morning. After Motivate shut the system down at 11 p.m. Wednesday night in response to heavy snowfall, it was still offline during the a.m. commute today, even though the streets were mostly clear of snow:
UNELECTED, OUT-OF-CONTROL @CitiBikeNYC IS STILL ON LOCKDOWN. OUR COMMUTE IS AT STAKE. SAD. pic.twitter.com/V7x7pLWDhZ
— Matt AV Chaban (@MC_NYC) February 10, 2017
Motivate started to reactivate the system this afternoon, with bikes available to be undocked at 250 of its 610 stations (bikes can be docked at all stations).
It's standard procedure for Citi Bike to halt operations during a winter storm and the ensuing snow clearance. But what's the protocol for bringing stations back online once the streets are plowed?
Motivate hires contractors to clear snow from stations after a storm. "As you can imagine, digging out on-street stations that in the plow zone after the storm takes time, especially with heavy, wet snow and below-freezing temperatures," said Motivate spokesperson Dani Simons. "As the system has grown we have worked to be able to meet the growing challenge that snow presents."
Waiting for stations to get shoveled, though, might be an excess of caution:
.@MC_NYC @CitiBikeNYC MO is to tweet pics of its 3 shovelers while waiting for snow to melt. Would clear faster if stations/bikes in use!
— Jon Orcutt (@jonorcutt) February 10, 2017
Citi Bike will be bringing the rest of its stations online on a rolling basis. You can check the system map to see which stations are operational.
