B-cycle is an innovative new bike-sharing startup that has kicked off with a clever little promotion.  At their website, they have a short video explaining all of the benefits of bike-sharing and explaining how their system makes it work.  Then they ask the question, “Who wants it more?”  They allow you to fill in a form to add your community to the list of prospects that presumably will be on the short-list when they are ready to begin rolling out across the country.

Denver is already on the actual short-list, as their mayor announced last month that they would be installing the B-cycle system.  And the rest of current top ten of the “who wants it more” vote contains some nice places known for their progressive planning (rank/city/current votes):

1. Fort Collins    321
2. Boulder    62
3. Denver    49
4. Austin     47
5. Louisville    46
6. Glencoe    44
7. Miami    33
8. Lexington    25
9. Warrensburg    18
10. Chicago    17

Here is the thing, I want OKC to be on this top ten list.  It makes a statement about the city and what the people care about.  Plus, it is good publicity, on the B-cycle website it cycles (intended) through the top ten, naming each and the current number of votes.  Right now, Oklahoma City has only one vote…that is where you come in.

So go watch the video if you want, but no matter what, go vote to bring B-cycle to Oklahoma City!

Feel free to leave a comment here to let the world know you voted and spread the word on twitter, facebook, etc.  Who knows, maybe it will lead to something.  By the end of the weekend I want to be climbing up the top ten list on our way to #1!

UPDATE 3/6 at 11:27 a.m. est:

We are in the Top Ten!

Thanks to the social networking brilliance of @urbanizedokie on twitter, Oklahoma City has broken into the top ten.  I for one, think we should keep it going and cruise on up into the top 5.  To vote, just go to Bcycle.com and then click the button on the lower left that says, “I Want It More.”

As a token of my thanks, I want to encourage you to check out what @urbanizedokie has going on at Oklahoma’s Red Dirt Emporium – Bricktown’s premiere gift store!  And you might also want to take advantage of the great weather with a ride on one of Bricktown’s Water Taxis.


UPDATE 3/6 at 3:04 p.m. est:

We’re up to #2

That’s right, we’re up to #2. That puts Oklahoma City ahead of places like Boulder, Denver, Austin – a nice statement for our wonderful city. We still have some work to do if we are going to take over the top spot from Fort Collins, CO; but they are holding steady and we are still surging forward. And remember to type in “Oklahoma City”, not “OKC” or a metro suburb – it waters down the vote total! Vote early and often! Thanks!

New York City’s Department of Transportation recently kicked of their ‘Summer Streets’ program, similar to Bogota’s Ciclovia the program temporarily closes major streets to automobiles, allowing people to takeover the space and use it to walk, bike, or just hangout. Like Bogota, they also provided health and fitness activities to encourage people to get out and exercise.

Do you think this could happen in Oklahoma City? Would we be willing to give some space back to pedestrians, even if only for a day? Creating a permanent pedestrian friendly environment downtown will take some time. It will require the full commitment of the city with each new development, zoning change, and public improvement. But closing a street for a day takes nothing more than the will and a “road closed” sign. If you have ever been downtown during the day on a Saturday, then you know that traffic is not really a problem. It would be great to close a couple streets from downtown all the way to the trails at the river every Saturday. South of 10th Street on Broadway then down Shields to the river is my preference. The YMCA would be able to provide some exercise programming and the two new bicycle shops – Bicycle Alley and Schlegel’s Bicycles – could serve as headquarter for bike rentals, etc.

If you are interested in improving things on a more permanent basis, check out this post on Mapping Pedestrian Friendliness in OKC!