Today’s the day that many of you have been waiting for. It’s your first opportunity to register as an annual member in Seattle’s new bicycle share program: Pronto! And as a gift to the first 600 people to register, you’ll receive a swanky keyfob (as seen below) and bragging rights as a Pronto! Founding Member. Who doesn’t want to be a Founding Member? Registration starts at noon sharp and costs $85 for one year. The service launch for Pronto! is scheduled mid-September for October 13.
Membership gives you 24/7 access to the Pronto! cycle sharing service for no additional cost. The system is easy to use with over 50 docking stations throughout Seattle’s most popular neighborhoods (see map of planned stations): Capitol Hill, Downtown, South Lake Union, Eastlake, and the University District.
As long as you return a checked out bike within a half hour of picking it up, you don’t pay anything more. By simply docking a bike to return it, you can immediately pick up another if your intended journey will actually take longer than a half hour. The idea of the system is short trips around town to keep the bikes circulating throughout the system.
Of course, if you’re not interested in being a member, that’s okay, too. Pronto! will have short-term pass options as well. For the very occasional rider, you can purchase 1-day or 3-day passes to access the system. Each docking station will have a kiosk to manage purchases and accounts. Using the system is no different for non-member ridres, except that a temporary pass is issued instead of the handy keyfobs. 1-day passes cost $8, 3-day passes cost $16.
If you do the math, the very occasional rider should probably consider a membership if they think they’ll use the system more than 10 days out of the year within the bikeable zone. Keep in mind, King County does maintain a helmet law, so you can bring your own helmet, rent one for $2 at the docking stations, or flaunt the law (not that we’re encouraging that–maybe).
Not convinced of cycle share yet? Tom over at the Seattle Bike Blog has a fantastic rundown on Pronto!’s standard bike. Last month, he was invited to take a test run on Seattle streets, and needless to say, he’s a true believer. For more information on Pronto! Cycle Share, visit their website or check out our original article on the topic.
UPDATE 1: Pronto! has two tiers of membership currently offered as seen below.
Become a Pronto Member tomorrow at 12pm. Woohoo! @CyclePronto @seabikeblog @CascadeBicycle @bikeworks206 @seattledot pic.twitter.com/HSYE3xeJen
— Pronto Cycle Share (@CyclePronto) August 25, 2014
UPDATE 2: According to the Seattle Bike Blog, the launch will actually be October 13, not mid-September.
Stephen is a professional urban planner in Puget Sound with a passion for sustainable, livable, and diverse cities. He is especially interested in how policies, regulations, and programs can promote positive outcomes for communities. With stints in great cities like Bellingham and Cork, Stephen currently lives in Seattle. He primarily covers land use and transportation issues and has been with The Urbanist since 2014.