July 1, 2025
Library and Community Services
DATE: July 1, 2025
TO: Mayor Martinez and Members of the City Council
FROM:
LaShonda White, Deputy City Manager – Community
Services
Gabino Arredondo, Project Manager
SUBJECT:
Contract Amendment No. 2 with Charleston Mobility for
Electric Bikeshare Operations
FINANCIAL IMPACT: The expenditure is being proposed for approval from the funds set aside via the Fiscal Year 2025-26
Environmental and Community Investment Agreement
(ECIA) Transportation Budget and based on the First
Mile/Last Mile Transportation Strategic Plan (Account
String: 11785051 400201 2A109).
PREVIOUS COUNCIL
ACTION:
June 4, 2019
July 20, 2021
August 24, 2022
September 12, 2023
January 28, 2025
STATEMENT OF THE
ISSUE:
City staff is requesting City Council approval to execute a second contract amendment with sole-source provider
Charleston Mobility to continue operations of the City of Richmond electric bikeshare program.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
APPROVE a second contract amendment with
Charleston Mobility in an amount not to exceed $410,000 for a total not to exceed contract amount of $3,150,341, with a term ending September 19, 2028, to support the
continued operation of the citywide electric bikeshare
program; and APPROPRIATE $410,000 from the
Environmental and Community Investment Agreement
(ECIA) Transportation budget to cover the cost of the
AGENDA
REPORT
July 1, 2025
contract amendment – Community Services (LaShonda
White 510-620-6828/Gabino Arredondo 510-620-6606).
DISCUSSION:
On July 18, 2018, the City of Richmond and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) entered a grant funding agreement in the amount of $1,024.000 to fund the Bike Share Capital Program to plan and to operate a pilot electric bikeshare program. The program was to fund a total of 250 electric bikes located amongst 25 bike hubs within an approved project area. This grant helped launch the City of Richmond’s electric bikeshare program. Since the launch and expiration of the MTC grant on December 2022, the City has funded the bikeshare program out of Environmental and Community Investment Agreement (ECIA) Transportation funds, which are meant to fund programs and projects that will reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
The goal of the Bike Share Capital Program was to expand bicycle access and use through bike sharing and to facilitate multimodal transportation in connection with transit and other regional bike share operators. The MTC funding was intended to help project sponsors with capital purchases and implementation costs, including outreach.
On June 15, 2020, the Richmond Transportation Division successfully launched the electric bikeshare program.
In mid-June 2022, the bikeshare program accomplished nearly two years of uninterrupted bike share operations, and Richmond received recognition as an innovative micromobility leader.
Unfortunately, in early July 2022, national news reports announced that Richmond’s bikeshare contractor, Bolt Mobility, had abruptly ceased operations within several markets leaving behind hundreds of locked bikes and hubs without notice. Bolt Mobility left approximately 60 bikes at various hubs throughout the City and defaulted on their local warehouse lease containing over 150 additional bikes (many in various states of disrepair) and hub equipment.
Emergency Contract and Program Relaunch Delays
On August 19, 2022, City Council approved an emergency bikeshare sole-source contract with Charleston Mobility (also known as Ride Today), who was committed to salvage the remaining eBike equipment and relaunch the program within a matter of months. The emergency eBike Share Plan was developed to fulfill obligations under the Richmond Rising Transformative Climate Communities (TCC) Grant and support the relaunch of the bikeshare program. The plan limited deployment to a maximum of 100 bikes to allow time for program stabilization, equipment repair, community engagement, strategic growth planning, and evaluation of the previous program’s effectiveness.
July 1, 2025
Electric Bikeshare Update
The City and Ride Today had a soft launch in September 2023 which included four (4) bike hubs, and 27 deployed bikes, with the official launch in February 2024. Through May 2025, there have been an additional nine (9) hubs, of which six (6) of these are located in the TCC Project Areas (i.e., Iron Triangle, Coronado, and Santa Fe Neighborhood Councils). The bikeshare relaunch was funded through ECIA Transportation funding.
To support continued funding, on November 20, 2024, the ECIA Transportation Committee received a presentation from Ride Today staff on the bikeshare partnership with the City and approved a recommendation to City Council for $577,484 in ECIA funds to sustain the program for an additional eight (8) months. The current system statistics and key performance indicators for the bikeshare program are listed below in Table 1.
Table 1
Milestone % / # Completed (Indicator)
Total # of ridership since launch of program 2200+
Repeat users 432
Average trips per user 2.86
Co2 Emissions Saved 16.9 metric tons
Positive experience during ridership 90%
Recommended Action and Next Steps
As the ECIA Transportation Committee is not currently meeting due to lack of quorum, City staff recommends that the City Council approve a second amendment to the contract with Charleston Mobility and appropriate $410,000 in ECIA funds to support continued program operations for an additional six (6) months. The estimated monthly cost is approximately $68,000. City staff will work collaboratively with Ride Today and grant writers on the City’s approved, on-call list to research opportunities for grants to sustain this program in the long-term.
As with many other transportation services, the fees collected by users never equate to the cost to operate the program. If there is a desire to continue to provide bikeshare services for Richmond residents, the City will need to subsidize the program and/or in collaboration with Ride Today, find grant opportunities to sustain the program.
Additional City staff have been added to support the Transportation Division which will allow for more focused efforts on researching and applying for bikeshare-related grants.
In addition, Ride Today hired a government grant funding team in Washington, D.C. with a focus on locating and applying for grant funding.
Future plans for the bikeshare program include expanding by ten additional hub locations and deploying 50 more bikes to improve accessibility and meet increasing demand. Ride Today will continue outreach efforts to grow the user base, including neighborhood engagement, public tabling events, social media campaigns, partnerships with local organizations, listening sessions, surveys, and coordination with neighboring
July 1, 2025
cities to support regional expansion. Program growth is critical to long-term sustainability.
Efforts will also focus on securing key partnerships, such as a title sponsor(s), lead safety sponsor(s), and additional sponsorships, to support program growth and sustainability. Additionally, the funding will prioritize pursuing grant funding opportunities while implementing strategies to boost ridership and maximize bike utilization, fostering a more connected and sustainable transportation network.
SYNERGISTIC POLICIES:
The Richmond First Mile/Last Mile Transportation Strategic Plan builds upon recent planning efforts that focus on improved transit connectivity, enhanced accessibility, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.
The Bicycle Master Plan sets forth a blueprint for completion of a 145-mile system of bikeways and support facilities within Richmond. The Plan builds upon the existing system of on-street and off-street bicycle facilities throughout the City, focusing on connections between neighborhoods, safe routes to schools and access to major destinations such as employment centers, stores and shops, parks, trails and open space areas. The Plan also includes criteria for defining different types of bicycle facilities, a listing of priority projects, recommendations for increasing the supply of bicycle parking, design standards and education and safety programs. One of the goals includes increasing the number of people of all ages and backgrounds who bicycle for transportation, recreation and health.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
Attachment 1 – Charleston Mobility Emergency Bike Share Contract Attachment 2 – Charleston Mobility Bike Share Contract Amendment 1 Attachment 3 – Proposed Charleston Mobility Bike Share Contract Amendment 2 Attachment 4 – E-Bike Share Update Presentation