To Citi Bike or not to Citi Bike? That is the question. Despite constant price increases, Citi Bike remains a popular mode of transportation among Jersey City residents.
Citi Bike launched its service in Jersey City in 2015 with 350 bikes and 35 stations across the city’s six boroughs. Since then, the service has expanded to 820 bikes at 82 stations in Jersey City and Hoboken.
When the membership was introduced, it cost only $149 per year. Now it costs $219.99.
The average increase in annual membership fees is 4.03% per year.
Compared to other modes of transportation, the monthly cost of a Citi Bike membership (about $18.33 per month) is significantly cheaper.
A 30-day SmartLink Card for the PATH train costs $110.25. Monthly passes for the bus cost between $67 and $289, depending on the number of zones and whether you reach Manhattan. Monthly passes for the light rail cost $62 or $80, depending on the line.
“Citi Bike is an incredible deal. Still under $20 a month to have a bike available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year at hundreds of locations throughout the New York metropolitan area. All you have to do is sit on it, start riding and then stop. No maintenance, no locks, no storage. You don’t have to store it. There’s a dedicated place to put it back. It’s hard to beat that,” said Tony Borelli, vice president of Bike JC, a civic organization for bicycle advocacy, education and cycling.
There are only two limitations to this statement: if you use a Citi Bike for a single ride and if you live in one of the Jersey City boroughs where there are few Citi Bike stations.
In the first few years of its existence, Citi Bike did not offer single rides. You had to either buy a day or weekly pass or take out an annual membership.
The company finally introduced single rides for $4 in 2017. Almost a year later, it offered a special $3 single ride promotion to encourage more people to try out its bikes.
The company then maintained the $3 single fare for two years and then introduced an additional fee after the first 30 minutes of travel.
This is where the actual costs apply. For single trips, Citi Bike is more expensive than other alternatives.
Noticeably, there are no stations in Liberty State Park.
A single Citi Bike ride costs $4.79 for the first 30 minutes plus $0.30 per additional minute.
The single PATH fare is $2.75 (and hasn’t increased since 2020). And despite NJ Transit’s 15 percent fare increase for bus, train, and light rail riders that went into effect July 1, the first fare increase in nine years, prices are still lower than Citi Bike’s single-ride ticket. A local one-zone bus fare is $1.80, the bus fare from Jersey City to the Port Authority Bus Terminal is now $4, and light rail fares are either $2.55 or $1.80.
Another obstacle: There are no Citi Bike stations in certain neighborhoods, making using them inconvenient.
“For me, the membership is not worth it. But that’s because there aren’t many stops near me. I don’t want to have to walk 15 minutes to get to the bike and get to the train when my bus stop is right across the street,” said Ella Brighton, a resident of The Heights.
While Citi Bike has expanded the number of its stations in Jersey City over the years, over half (27) of the 51 stations are located in Downtown JC.
There are still very few Citi Bike stations in areas like Greenville, Communipaw, West Side, Bergen-Lafayette and The Heights.
According to Borelli, this could be due to the lack of cycling infrastructure.
“If you look at where there are protected bike lanes in the city and then look at the Citi Bike map, you’ll definitely see that they’re similar,” Borelli said. “If you want better City Bike service and rapid transit, it helps to create better bike infrastructure. It all builds on each other. But ultimately, it’s the cities, counties and states that have to equip the streets with the stuff they need.”
Liberty State Park is conspicuously devoid of any stations. Sam Pesin, president of Friends of Liberty State Park, said, “Citi Bike stations in Liberty State Park would be a great addition to connecting to stations in Jersey City and Hoboken. Liberty Park also needs safe bike lanes.”
The Newport Centre Mall also has a glaring gap in coverage because the nearest station is closer to the Hudson River.
CitiBike has announced that it will increase prices to support “operational growth and continued expansion,” but the company has not yet revealed where it plans to expand next.
