BATON ROUGE, LA — September 26, 2018 — Today, Mayor President Sharon Weston Broome announced that Gotcha was selected to launch the first public bike share program in Baton Rouge early next year, with the support of the City-Parish of Baton Rouge. Gotcha’s bike share services will include the siting, installation, operation, maintenance, and ongoing management of the program in partnership with the City-Parish and other local stakeholders. The system will encompass approved locations within the city, Louisiana State University, and Southern University.
Launching by Spring 2019, the bike share program will include 500 GPS-enabled e-bikes and 50 hubs across the city. Riders can locate and reserve bikes through Gotcha’s app. The system promises to be an affordable, accessible, and a sustainable form of transportation for the Baton Rouge community.
“We wanted a partner with the expertise to serve both the community and local universities with integrated, multi-modal forms of environmentally-friendly transportation," said Mayor Broome, "This system will increase alternative forms of transportation, reduce parking issues, and promotes an active, vibrant City-Parish.”
“We’re excited to partner with Baton Rouge to provide convenient and efficient ways for residents to reduce vehicle usage. Gotcha is committed to enhancing the health, mobility, and landscape of our partner communities, and the leaders of the city share this commitment,” said Sean Flood, CEO of Gotcha.
Gotcha was selected through a competitive request for proposal (RFP) process conducted by the City-Parish. Four bike share companies responded, and proposals were reviewed by a voting committee composed of City-Parish, LSU, and Southern University representatives. The City-Parish was awarded a Transportation Alternative Program (TAP) grant by DOTD last year for the bike share program, which received a unanimous vote of approval and match funding from the Metro Council. The agenda item authorizing the Mayor-President to execute a contract with Gotcha Bike, LLC was introduced at Metro Council on September 26, 2018, with the public hearing and vote on October 10, 2018.
Details about the bike share system including name, station locations, pricing plans, and bike design will be unveiled in the coming months.
ABOUT GOTCHA
Gotcha is the only mobility-as-a-service (MaaS) company offering three sustainable micro-transit products — 100%-electric ride share, customized dockless bike share, and electric scooters — through a proprietary app-based platform. Gotcha helps communities lead happier, more productive lives through alternative forms of transportation specifically designed for each market served. Gotcha currently operates 30+ systems on college campuses across the U.S. and in cities such as Burlington (VT), Sarasota (FL), and Toledo (OH). Gotcha is headquartered in Charleston, S.C., with an office in Los Angeles. For more information, visit www.ridegotcha.com, email (engage@thegotchagroup.com), or call 1-843-647-7342.