Idea: Always Offer Low-assist option for eBikes (next-gen)
As many riders know, the low-assist mode for next-gen eBikes is only available if there are no classic/acoustic bikes at the station. When you then scan the eBike using the app you choose between low assist and full assist. Citi Bike ought to offer the option of low assist for next-gen eBikesregardless of the presence of a classic/acoustic bike to accommodate. If you agree with this idea, please like this post to show your interest to the Bike Angel team. For me there are two reasons why I'd like to see this: Classic bikes have seats that don't go high enough for riders 6'1 or taller which can lead to knee pain for long or uphill rides. Next-gen bikes allow for the seat to move higher but more often than not I have to pay for this privilege because there are classic bikes at the station. On more than one occasion I don't get the pedal assist option for eBikes because there's one classic bike at a broken dock that can't be removed so I'm forced to pay for a full power eBike ride when I don't want to/shouldn't have to. To streamline the experience, this should be an opt-in option so that full-assist riders used to scanning and riding aren't burdoned by having to choose full-assist each time. Lastly, in conjunction with this idea, please offer users the pedal assist preference via the iPhone and Android apps (under Settings). For some reason it is only offered via https://account.citibikenyc.com/profile after logging into your account making it frustrating and confusing for riders who primarily use the app and can't find anywhere to update their preference:Improve the Citi Bike Map
Problem: In the Citi Bike map (in the app) it is almost impossible to tell traffic flow direction for streets when browsing the map, an arguably important piece of information when biking in NYC. Similarly, reading street names is just as hard with them only appearing if you zoom in almost all the way! The green bike lane lines cover the street arrows which indicate the direction of traffic (I've circled two arrows that are being covered). Also, only two street name labels are showing here: Suggestions: Make it easier to see the traffic flow arrows by either making the direction arrows easier to see (change color, size, etc) or allow users to toggle the green bike lane overlay on the map on and off Make it easier to see/read street names and prioritize them over places of interest Add a toggle to show/hide places of interest on the map (restaurants, hotels, stores, etc) Lastly, an argument against improving the current experience might be to user the "directions" feature which will give you a correct route but to that I say that sometimes we just want to do an ad-hoc bike ride. Secondly, bike angels (like me) would love to better see street names and traffic flow directions I don't really use the directions feature because there's no way to simply put a pin on the map or tap on a station as your start and end address; we must type in the address which is time-consuming.Get Answers Directly from the Bike Angels Team
Get Answers Directly from the Bike Angels Team The Bike Angels Team is active in this community with members of our team monitoring and answering topics frequently. But, we’ve noticed some niche questions and feedback popping up, and some Angels that answered our survey expressing they’d like to connect with members of the Bike Angels Team more directly. So, we’re hosting a Bike Angels Community AMA! 🎉 An AMA, or Ask Me Anything, is a Q&A event that connects an audience with key members of their community. Our AMA will create a dedicated time and place for Angels to directly ask the Bike Angels Team questions. We’ve invited program and product experts and seasoned Bike Angels that are on the Citi Bike Team to answer your questions. Join us the week of June 21st - 28th to ask questions to the Bike Angels Team directly. We’ll post another update with full details about the event by June 14th. Keep track of your questions in the meantime!Jess' "Bike Angels Beginner FAQ"
Jess' "Bike Angels Beginner FAQ" is a helpful addition to this forum, but it would benefit greatly (and is key to the Bike Angels experience) if it also addressed common problems and glitches people might encounter, along with options for resolutions (which are currently quite limited ). Aside from the expected technical issues, the real problem is the lack of support and the frustration of uncredited points. In the old days, they'd look it up, realize that an error was made, give you the points, and you move on. Those days are long gone. Lyft X ignores the facts and data presented, and refuses to explain why, then ignores any further communication. The phone support, while friendly, is now 100% unhelpful. They might keep you on the line for 30 minutes only to tell you the station was down, without crediting your points, and then refer you to email support. Aside from Jess, the email support is the best, but their communication is slow and cumbersome. Despite taking great care, I frequently lose points for legitimate rides and have given up on complaining. In Chicago, Divvy allows e-Bikes to be parked out of stations, and they're scattered all over the city. I track them down, often finding them in obscure locations. Returning these e-bikes to mainstream areas is crucial for the system’s health, but e-Bikes out of stations also carry the highest risk of not getting credited points. Scooters are not allowed on the lakeshore trail. As you approach, the scooters automatically stops and people just leave the bikes there. It's a long, expensive ride back to a docking station.Is There a Bike Angels Reward for Returning Abandoned Citibike?
Is there a reward through the Bike Angels program for returning abandoned Citibikes that are left outside of stations? If so, what is the process for doing this? I often see bikes left around, but given my tight schedule, it doesn’t seem worth the effort without a clear incentive. A way to scan them to know that they are truly abandoned and receive substantial points for returning them would be ideal.
Citi Bike Dock Issues: Need Better Reporting
I often find myself riding to stations that show available docks on the app, only to arrive and find none. Despite the app indicating available docks, the reality is often different. For instance, at 1st Ave & E 68th St on July 2nd at 11:30 am: The app showed six available spaces, but there were none. I suspect the valet left without updating the dock status. Several people were already waiting for a space to free up, while others left in frustration. Here's another example in Midtown: The app shows one but it's permanently unusable. The app allows us to report bike issues using the wrench icon, but there seems to be no way to report problems with dock stations. Is there an alternative to calling customer service for this? Perhaps the Angel program could be enhanced to address this, supplementing the bi-monthly station inspections, or we could implement a feature to correct system data inaccuracies more easily. Thanks.
Too many E-Bikes at high elevation stations
Ever since the new policy that ended our ability to get free e-bikes on stations with no regular bikes (seehttps://nyc.streetsblog.org/2023/09/19/say-good-bye-to-the-free-citi-bike-e-bike-loophole)I've noticed that certain stations have been accumulating a lot of E-bikes that don't leave the station. This happens more often on high-elevation stations- clearly people want to take e-bikes up a hill, but no one wants to take them down. Here is a picture of a station in Morningside Heights: I know that you can ride E-bikes with "reduced power" after all the regular bikes are gone, but in my experience this is rather unpleasant. I think Citi Bike needs to reconsider this new policy.
