Guest Editorial: Project MOVER Bikeshare is Launching July 9th – Thanks, and Give it a Try, Croton!

"Project MOVER is recreation, exercise, and travel in the Village and throughout the region."

By Len Simon, Deputy Mayor, Croton-on-Hudson

Croton is a great place to live if you enjoy riding a bike. So, if it’s 55 degrees or above, not raining and daylight, that’s usually how I get around the Village for meetings and errands. And it’s a great pleasure when I do so to see lots of riders along the way, especially when they bike by the rules – wearing helmets, staying to the right, and stopping for red lights and stop signs.

You can tell I believe bicycling and Croton are a good match. That’s why I was very pleased and interested more than four years ago when Village Manager Bryan Healy asked me to attend a meeting with neighboring communities on some kind of bikeshare idea.

I learned in that meeting that the Village of Ossining was applying for a big NYSERDA grant (that’s our state energy agency) to set up a bike share program. But the really intriguing part of the meeting was finding out that if Ossining was chosen for the grant, there would be funding included to establish bike share systems in smaller communities in the Rivertowns area.

Following more briefings, discussions and evaluations, Croton was asked to become one of those second phase communities, and in August 2021, the Village submitted a letter of interest to join what soon became known as “Project Mover” along with the Town of Ossining, Tarrytown, Sleepy Hollow and Dobbs Ferry. For you jargon lovers out there, we are technically “Electric Mobility Incubator (EMI) communities”, but I prefer you call us “Croton”.

The Ossining Program took off in August 26^th 2024 and ran until December 9^th with 50 bikes in 11 stations, 1,459 rides, 1,983 miles, 27,545 minutes, 1.36 mile average distance, and a 94.32 % satisfaction rate. It included a maintenance team for the entire project making sure the bikes are in good shape and that their batteries are properly charged. Croton and the other communities closely observed their progress and began to plan our own bikeshare versions.

Once the Ossining pilot program was deemed successful, Shared Mobility and Drop Mobility, the companies chosen to manage Project MOVER, began working with Croton and the other communities, to roll out their e-bikeshare programs.

So after years of work on the part of many here in Croton, we are all very excited that Project MOVER will launch in Croton on July 9th. All Village residents are invited to join in the celebration and fun as the program gets underway. The ribbon-cutting will feature local leaders, test rides, and participation info. The kick-off will happen on Wednesday July 9th at the Grand Street entrance to Dobbs Park at 11 a.m. Project MOVER Bike Share in Croton, our Village website Project Page for this initiative, will provide you history, background and up-to-date information on the program in our community.

Project Mover Croton hubs will be at the Croton-Harmon Train Station, the Grand Street entrance to Dobbs Park, upper Grand Street near Holy Name of Mary Church, the sidewalk in front of Maple Commons, South Riverside Avenue near Oneida Avenue, and the Croton Free Library. Each hub will have 5 or 6 bikes which are accessed via an app and QR code.

The Village has prepared a video which provides an overview of Project MOVER and answers some basic questions from Croton residents on how the program works. You can view the video in English and Español versions at the end of this article..

Bicycling safety is an important priority of Project MOVER in Croton. On Saturday, July 12th, at 10 a.m. in the Community Room of our Municipal Building, Project MOVER is sponsoring a special Smart Cycling Class. There is no cost, but it is important to register to participate. Information on this class is also available on the Projects and Initiatives website page.

Pricing for a Project MOVER bike ride is similar to how it is done in other places. Unlocking the bike with the app will cost $1.00 and then 20 cents per minute. A monthly membership is also available at $20 per month which gives the rider 30 minutes each day, after which the by-the-minute charge kicks in. Finally, there is an Income Qualified Membership for any community members experiencing financial hardship. All of this pricing information, along with a helpful FAQ section, can be found at https://projectmoverbikeshare.com.

Project MOVER is recreation, exercise, and travel in the Village and throughout the region. The regional aspect of the program means you can pick up a bike in Croton but drop it off at a hub in any of the other participating communities. Once you drop it off at a Project MOVER hub anywhere your charge for the time you had the bike is concluded. If you want to reverse the process anytime after, a new charge commences until you drop the bike off at a hub.

Here's another example. You arrive at our Metro North train station. You could take a bike from the train station hub and then return it to a hub in the Upper Village. From there you could get coffee at the Black Cow, ice cream at the Blue Pig, a gift for a friend at Upper Village Blooms, and then grab a bike to return to the train station. No charge to you while the bike is at a hub.

So many in Croton devoted their time and energy to make Project MOVER in Croton possible.

Mayor Brian Pugh and Village Manager Bryan Healy provided the overall direction and support for the program and its many parts including an operational agreement for it to run in Croton and adoption of new Village code to be consistent with state requirements for bikeshare. We are also very grateful to our Board of Trustees colleagues, to DPW for their dedicated work in getting the hubs ready, and to Police Chief Nikitopoulos for his advice on safety priorities.

Many thanks to our Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee, especially Chairman Matt Arnold and members Nora Regis Odland and Riley Moeller, each of who dedicated their individual expertise to helping the program move forward. Matt very ably steered the Committee’s participation in the development of Project MOVER from the start. Nora’s talent in communications and outreach were highly valued. Riley, owner of Croton E-Bikes (formerly Pedego), and an expert on all things e-bike, has been an active participant from the start.

We learned a great deal from Ossining and Tarrytown, who preceded us in launching Project MOVER, so we are very appreciative of their time and assistance.

Finally, thank you Croton - you participated in our community survey, public hearings, and in many other ways communicated your interest and enthusiasm about bikeshare in Croton.

So it’s been four-plus years of learning, planning and preparation. I’ve been very glad to have the opportunity to help this process along with the participation of many talented folks here in the Village. We hope that everyone who feels comfortable in doing so will give our Croton bikeshare a try. We are eager to hear from you about how the program works for you and any changes we should consider down the road.

So if you can, take a Project MOVER bikeshare ride in Croton. Wear a helmet, abide by all the safety rules posted on those big signs at the hubs, and have fun. Take the Bike Safety class if you can on July 12^th and please join us on July 9^thfor the launch.

Video in English:

Video in Spanish:

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