AUSTIN, Texas — Austin residents could soon see more bicycles in the area as the city council looks to expand the MetroBike system.
At the Austin City Council's regular meeting on Thursday, council members approved a measure to apply for a grant from the Texas Department of Transportation to expand MetroBike. That's the city's docked, bike-share system maintained and operated by Capital Metro.
Austin is one of the few cities that pay for public bicycles with city money and council members hope the state funding would help expand the program to underserved communities.
Supporters hope an expansion would make MetroBikes more accessible, so people who use trains or buses could then hop on a bike to get home from the transit stops.
In a memorandum from the Austin Transportation Department (ATD) to the city council, ATD said it's seeking a total of $15 million from the grant to expand and enhance the MetroBike program. It will consist of $12 million in state funds and a $3 million, or 20%, local match.
Planned improvements include "fully electrifying" the fleet of bikes and tripling the bike-share network from 80 stations to 240. ATD said if it receives the requested state funding, it would help improve affordability and access across the city, especially in underserved areas.
ATD said MetroBike has seen "significant growth" in ridership since introducing e-assist bikes in 2020, adding that e-bikes in Austin now account for five times the trips of non-electric bikes.
The MetroBike program has been active since 2012, according to the city. Currently, the program includes 500 classic bikes, 347 electric bikes and 79 stations.