FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Katie Martin, Associate Director, CATMA
katie@catmavt.org, 802-881-0283 x2
THE BIRD BIKESHARE SYSTEM WILL NOT RETURN TO CHITTENDEN COUNTY THIS SPRING
(Winooski, Vermont) – Friday, January 17, 2025 – Bird regrettably informed the Chittenden Area Transportation Management Association on Wednesday, January 15th that their Bird bikes would not be returning to Chittenden County this spring due to the cost’s vs revenue in a smaller market.
The Bird bikeshare system began operating an average of 150 bikes in the Cities of Burlington, South Burlington and Winooski in July 2023, as a dockless system, offering easy to use technology and community-based pricing. “Although we are sad that Bird cannot continue operating a system in our region, we understand the complicated economics surrounding micro-mobility,” said Katie Martin, Associate Director at CATMA. “Bird has been a responsible, adaptable and upstanding partner providing transparency and a customer centric bikeshare system in our community.”
“After careful consideration and collaborative discussions with local partners, we have made the decision not to continue the bike program in Burlington for 2025. This was not an easy choice, and we greatly value the relationships we’ve built with the community. We thank CATMA, the City of Burlington, and all local stakeholders for their collaboration and partnership. We are confident in the city’s ability to build upon the progress made and wish them continued success in making alternative transportation a priority,” said Adam Davis, Director of Partnerships, Policy & Communications at Bird.
Micro-mobility is a complex business that provides a much-needed additional mode of commuting, fills a void of public transportation and gets people out of their cars when commuting or general trips. CATMA has received many stories of people using bike-share to get to and from work when transit is not available such as late at night or in places transit does not service.
The system reports 50,547 rides, 64,615 miles driven, an average trip of 10 minutes and 1.27 miles demonstrating that bikeshare is a valuable mode to our transportation network in Chittenden County.
For any inquiries or further information, please feel free to contact Bird at vermont311@bird.co or CATMA. Stay safe and warm this winter, and we look forward to Bird’s return in the coming months.
About Bird
Bird is an electric vehicle company dedicated to bringing affordable, environmentally friendly transportation solutions such as e-scooters and e-bikes to communities across the world. Founded in 2017 by transportation pioneer Travis VanderZanden, Bird is rapidly expanding. Today, Bird has facilitated over 175 million rides on Bird vehicles through its ride-sharing business and makes its products available for purchase at www.bird.co and via leading retailers and distribution partners. Bird partners closely with the cities in which it operates to provide a reliable and affordable transportation option for people who live and work there.
About CATMA
CATMA is a non-profit, membership-based organization established in 1992 to jointly plan and manage transportation and parking in ways that better coordinate land use and reduce environmental impacts. CATMA’s suite of comprehensive transportation demand management programs and services provide simple transportation solutions to improve commutes, support healthy lifestyles and reduce congestion in Chittenden County. Learn more about CATMA and the bikeshare system at www.catmavt.org.
