| Pronto Cycle Share | |
| Owner: | Puget Sound Bike Share |
| Locale: | Seattle, Washington |
| Transit Type: | Bicycle-sharing system |
| Stations: | 50[1] |
| Chief Executive: | Holly Houser, Executive Director |
| Operator: | Motivate |
| Vehicles: | 500 |
Pronto Cycle Share, branded as Pronto!, was a public bicycle-sharing system in Seattle, Washington, that operated from 2014 to 2017. The system, initially owned by a non-profit and later by the Seattle Department of Transportation, included 54 stations in the city's central neighborhoods and 500 bicycles. Motivate (formerly Alta Bike Share) operated the system, and Alaska Airlines was the program's presenting sponsor.[2] On March 31, 2017, Pronto shut down operations, and disassembly of stations began, with the bicycles being offered to other cities that wish to start a similar system.
Pronto launched on October 13, 2014, with 500 bikes in 50 stations available for use in Downtown, South Lake Union, Belltown, Capitol Hill, the U-District, Eastlake, First Hill, Pioneer Square, and the International District.[3] It soon ran into major funding issues in 2015 after the City of Seattle put any further fundraising on hold while awaiting council approval to purchase the system.
The City of Seattle finally bought the system for $1.4 million on March 14, 2016, but by this time, the system had become insolvent due to less than expected ridership, revenue, and a lack of funding.[4] It was originally planned to be replaced with a new bikeshare system using a vendor who used electric bicycles,[5] but the new system was cancelled in January 2017.[6] The city decided to direct Pronto's share of $3 million in funding towards Safe Routes to School and other bicycle and pedestrian programs.[7]
On March 31, 2017, Pronto shut down operations, and disassembly of stations began, with the bicycles being offered to other cities that wish to start a similar system.[8]
Use of the Pronto system was based on either annual memberships ($85) or short-term passes of either 24 hours ($8) or 3 days ($16).[9]
Pronto Cycle Share was the first public bicycle sharing system in the United States to operate where a bicycle helmet law applies to cyclists of all ages.[10] To address this, the system installed helmet dispensers at each kiosk, along with a collection bin for used helmets. At the system's launch in October 2014, the helmets were available for free on the Honor system.[11] [12] A rental system was put into effect starting in spring 2015.[11]
Primary sponsorship for the system was provided by Seattle-based Alaska Airlines, which paid $2.5 million for a 5-year sponsorship that included their logo on the bikes themselves.[13] Seattle Children's Hospital, Group Health, REI, Vulcan Real Estate, and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center were among the system's secondary sponsors.[14]
The Pronto bike share system technology, both hardware and software, was provided by 8D Technologies, which also supplies the server technology for BIXI Montréal, Citi Bike in New York City, Santander Cycles in London, Capital Bikeshare in Washington DC, and others.[15]