Melrose Bike Ordinance Doesn't Get Into Gear

MELROSE, MA — A proposed ordinance to put restrictions on bike-sharing services such as Lime and legislate how they are used in the city when the current agreement expires in May piqued some interest but ultimately was deemed premature and didn't make it out of a Legal & Legislative Committee meeting this week.

The Shared Mobility Vehicle Ordinance proposed by Alderman Monica Medeiros was discussed Tuesday. Read the ordinance here.

In short, the ordinance would place a number of restrictions on those green and yellow bikes around the city, including lowering the cap on how many there can be, requiring the bikes be kept in designated station areas, and providing an avenue for Melrose ticket the company for infractions such as blocking a sidewalk, handicap ramp or fire hydrant, Medeiros said.

It would also institute a one-year licensing period, as well as bar any similar unmanned sharing service, such as motorized scooters, from being deployed in the same manner as Lime.

As it stands, the city has no ordinances or "true laws" related to bike-sharing companies and others like them, Medeiros said. Mayor Gail Infurna signed a Statement of Work agreement with Lime in the fall, but when it expires in May, there will be no regulations in place, according to Medeiros.

"The ordinance I have proposed would require licensing for any operator of a non-motorized shared mobility vehicle sharing service, such as LimeBike," Medeiros said. "Licensing by the Board of Aldermen would allow for an open, public process for sharing services to be vetted, resident’s concerns to be addressed, and for all parties to have a clear understanding of expectations and how the process works."

Medeiros also said the city gets no revenue in the current agreement. Her ordinance would see the city at least collect a license fee to help offset some of the incidental costs.

The Melrose Pedestrian-Bicycle Committee argued the ordinance was largely redundant given Melrose's current agreement with Lime. Where it wasn't redundant, the PBC said, it was often too restrictive, particularly where it would limit the number of bikes and attempt to ban technologies that still haven't come to the city, like the a motorized scooter-sharing service.

Under the city's current agreement, LimeBike can have up to 100 bikes in the community. Medeiros's ordinance would cap that number at 60. In the winter, there are about 25-30 lingering around, Medeiros said.

"While there are portions of the ordinance that meet a clear need and match the current agreement, there are others that don’t seem targeted to a particular problem and are unclear in their application," the PBC said. "Some provisions are either unenforceable or if enforced would constitute a low-priority use of scarce resources."

The other aldermen were a little less direct, but there was a general sense of agreement that the ordinance, while well-intentioned, was premature while the city and Lime work their way through a pilot program.

The pilot ends in May. It started in October, 2018, but the bikes started to pop up in 2017 when they seeped in from Malden.

Ride-sharing bikes have been pitched in part as a way to decongest streets, though they have ruffled some feathers by congesting the sidewalks. There have been complaints of people not being able to push strollers past poorly discarded bikes after use.

Under Medeiros's ordinance, people could still drive to and from where they need to go, but they must be safely parked in a way that doesn obstruct. If the bike is unused for 72 hours, the company would be responsible for making sure it gets to a designated station area or the city could impound it.

The bikes have grabbed a foothold in communities north of Boston. The arrived in Melrose in October, but popped up around the city before thanks to bikes from Malden making their way in.

Subscribe to Melrose Patch for more local news and real-time alerts, and like us on Facebook to get in on the conversation!

Got a local news tip? Email mike.carraggi@patch.com

Photo by Mike Carraggi, Patch