Atlanta's Bike Share Program Up And Rolling In Buckhead

ATLANTA, GA -- The roads of Atlanta's most expensive ZIP code, typically filled with late-model Mercedes and BMWs, will also be populated by the blue bikes of Atlanta’s Relay bike share program. Atlanta's burgeoning bike share program is up and rolling in Buckhead.

City leaders, joined by representatives from the organizations, Livable Buckhead and Relay rolled out the program Wednesday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Tower Place Park. Two more Relay stations are in the area, one at the Lenox MARTA station and the other at Piedmont Center.

“We are thrilled to have bike sharing available in Buckhead,” Denise Starling, executive director of Livable Buckhead, said in a news release. “Millennials, who make up a sizable percentage of Buckhead’s workforce and residents, want transportation choices like this. They are comfortable with the sharing economy and they don’t rely on their cars in the same way that previous generations do. That makes bike sharing an especially good fit, and it gives us the opportunity to improve mobility by adding a new transportation option.”

Bicycle-commuting has become a priority for the city under Mayor Kasim Reed. And the teal-colored bikes of the Relay program are becoming a mainstay outside Atlanta buildings.

“People across the city have responded enthusiastically to Relay during its first year,” Becky Katz, chief bicycle officer for the City of Atlanta, was quoted as saying. “With 500 bikes available and over 40,000 rides taken, we are looking forward to growing the bike share ridership and further expanding the system in Buckhead and citywide through the voter-approved TSPLOST funding.”

Relay, the bike-sharing program, has grown in three short months to encompass 500 bikes at more than 50 stations across Atlanta. The bike rental program is managed through an app on the rider’s smartphone.

For more information on Relay, visit www.relaybikeshare.com.

Image via Livable Buckhead