Mayor Wu and Bluebikes Municipalities Announce Five-Year Contract with Lyft, Major Electric Bike Fleet Expansion and Introduction of Charging Stations

Municipal investment expands the electric fleet and introduces dock-based charging stations, alongside new commitments for reliability.

BOSTON — Mayor Michelle Wu, joined by leaders from Cambridge, Somerville, and the ten other Bluebikes municipalities, announced a new five-year contract with Lyft to operate the Bluebikes regional bike share system. Following a competitive Request for Proposals (RFP) process led by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC), the agreement centers on an expansion of electric mobility, featuring a significant public investment in the ebike fleet and charging stations. The new contract also removes barriers to system growth by eliminating monthly operations fees for all participating municipalities.

The expansion, which leverages funding from federal, state, and local sources, will greatly increase access to ebikes in the Bluebikes system in response to high demand from riders since ebikes were introduced in December 2023. To facilitate this growth, the municipalities will be installing the first charging stations in the Bluebikes network. This transition to dock-based charging at high-ridership stations will ensure higher ebike availability, reduce van trips needed to swap batteries, and increase system efficiency. Funding will also support expansion of the overall Bluebikes network, with plans for over 200 new and replacement stations as well as new classic bikes to densify and expand the bike share network. The first 100 new ebikes will be rolled out by the end of April.

“Over the past two years, we’ve invested in a 40% expansion of the Bluebikes network across Boston,” said Mayor Michelle Wu of the City of Boston. “This reflects the growing demand for public transportation by bike, and responds to feedback from residents calling for expanded mobility options. This new contract delivers what riders need: enhanced access and service, upgraded stations, and greater availability of e-bikes.”

To ensure the system meets the needs of daily commuters, the new contract implements strengthened service commitments across the board. Lyft is required to meet higher performance standards to keep bikes available when and where riders need them — reducing the occurrence of empty or full stations, ensuring more balanced distribution of ebikes throughout the system, and improving overall bike availability through faster response times for maintenance and repairs.

Previously, participating Bluebikes municipalities who joined the system after 2017 paid monthly operations fees for each dock they owned. Under the new contract, revenue sharing has been restructured to eliminate these monthly operations fees for all participating municipalities, reducing public costs associated with station expansion.

Bluebikes will also lead regional road safety efforts through a new Safety & Education initiative. This includes a commitment to 60+ community events annually and quarterly bike education classes to ensure riders of all experience levels can navigate city streets confidently.

The following price increases will take effect for casual riders, while Annual Membership, member per-minute ebike and income-eligible membership rates remain unchanged at this time.

• Single Trip Unlock Fee: $3.00
• Day Pass: $11.99
• Single Trip and Day Pass Per-Minute Rates: $0.33/minute (includes all ebike ride/reservation minutes and classic ride overages).

“With more than two million Bluebikes trips starting or ending in Cambridge each year, demand for bike share continues to grow,” said Yi-An Huang, Cambridge City Manager. “In Cambridge we're continuing to invest in Bluebikes and safer streets. This agreement strengthens regional partnerships, removes barriers to expansion, and supports system growth. As ebike use continues to rise, expanding electric fleets and charging infrastructure is key to meeting demand and supporting sustainable travel across the Commonwealth.”

Somerville Mayor Jake Wilson said, "Bike share gives residents and visitors a fun, sustainable way to get around and helps us build a greener regional transit system. Somerville is proud to continue our investment in Bluebikes and to keep working with our neighbors, Lyft, and Blue Cross Blue Shield to ensure this publicly owned system stays affordable and accessible. A big thank you to our regional partners at MAPC, the Boston Region MPO, and MassDOT for helping secure critical public funding. With new stations and great partnerships, there's a lot to celebrate. Bike share is good for our health, good for the climate, and great for our communities."

"Bluebikes ridership has increased by 35 percent since 2021," said Lizzi Weyant, MAPC's Executive Director. "As the number of bikes and stations increase, and expand into new municipalities, we're hoping to achieve 9 million annual trips by 2031. This not only increases mobility options across Greater Boston, it also reduces traffic and associated pollution."

For more information, visit Bluebikes.com.

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About Bluebikes: Bluebikes is public transportation by bike. Owned by the Cities of Boston, Cambridge, Somerville, Everett, Chelsea, Newton, Revere, Watertown, Salem, Malden, Medford and the Towns of Arlington and Brookline, it is a fully integrated regional system with nearly 600 stations and thousands of bikes. Since its launch in 2011 through 2025, Bluebikes has seen over 32 million trips taken by residents and visitors alike.

CONTACTS: Press Office, City of Boston: press@boston.gov
MAPC Communications: communications@mapc.org
Lyft Communications: Press@Lyft.com