Expansion Plans on the Way
On a rainy afternoon at the Reston-Wiehle Silver Line Metro Station, on October 21, 2016, community leaders joined together to celebrate the arrival of a much-anticipated event: The launch of the rental bike service in Reston by Capital Bikeshare.
As the community grows and traffic gets heavier, especially at rush hour, the service comes in handy for people who have to travel short distances in Reston. People can drop off their bikes in any of the 435 stations, including Reston, Tysons Corner, Arlington, District of Columbia, Montgomery County and Alexandria.
In 2014, the Capital Bikeshare board approved an investment of $1.7 million for both, the Reston and Tysons Corner systems. The system provides 15 stations in Reston with approximately 224 bikes, and 14 in Tysons Corner with around 92 bikes.
Adam Lind, Fairfax County Bicycle Program Manager at Capital Bikeshare, said the process of bringing their service to Reston and Tysons Corner was a long one. “It’s been a two-year-long process of actual implementation,” he said. “We completed a feasibility study by June of 2014, since then we’ve been working towards the implementation, so [it’s been] about 27 months now.”
Plans of expansion are already on the way. The board of Capital Bikeshare approved funding for the second phase along the Silver Line Metro, including Reston Town Center, Herndon and Innovation Center. “Looking 5 years out, we’re looking to expand to other areas in Fairfax County such as Merrifield, Vienna, and Huntington,” said Lind.
Lind recognized public and private sector partners including the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), Tysons Partnership, Comstock Partners and Boston Properties for assisting in bringing Capital Bikeshare to Fairfax County.
