Dockless Durham is Dead?
https://indyweek.com/news/durham/spin-and-lime-bikes-in-durham-have-disappeared/
Lime Free Helmets
Get a free Helmet from lime by signing their pledge to ‘respect the ride’ https://www.li.me/respect-the-ride
Lime Price Increase
Mid-September 2018 Lime updated their pricing model for pedal bikes in Durham. The new price is $1 to unlock plus 5¢/min, and with the EDU discount it is 50¢ to unlock plus 2¢/min.
City of Durham’s Info Page
http://durhamnc.gov/3219/Bike-Share
Operators
There are currently two companies operating in Durham (Spin and Lime). Ofo was a third operator that was the last to start and the first to pull out of the Durham market. I have taken look at the costs, details, bikes, and apps. Thanks for reading, and let me know if you have corrections or additions!
Reporting Problems
For bike relocation requests or to report a bike that’s in need of repair, here is the contact information:
- @spincities (orange bikes) email support@spin.pm or call 1 (888)-262-5189
- @limebike (green bikes) email support@limebike.com, call 1 (888)-546-3345, or text 1 (888)-546-3345)
Costs
Promotions
- Current promos will be added here
Education Discounts
LimeBike and Spin offer a 50% education discount to those who register with an EDU email address. This discount applies to both pay-per-ride and subscription models. For Spin, the pay-per ride cost becomes 50¢ per half hour. For Lime, there is an extra 2¢/min charge. The LimePrime and Spin Unlimited subscriptions are also discounted as outlined in a section below. Note, when signing up for Spin don’t use the Facebook button to log in, rather enter an EDU email address if you have one to qualify for the 50% discount.
Regular Price Pay-Per-Ride
Spin charges $1 per 30 minutes of ride time (half price with EDU email). For Lime there is an extra 5¢/min charge (2¢ with EDU discount).
Subscriptions
The monthly model is pretty simple for Spin – a number of months with unlimited 30-minute rides for a fixed price. One month unlimited is $29 ($14 with EDU email). A 3-month plan is $59 ($29 with EDU email), and a 12-month plan is $99 ($49 with EDU email).
For LimeBike there appears to be a monthly price of $29.95 ($14.95 with the EDU discount). Rather than being unlimited like Spin, this plan includes 100 ‘free’ rides, and then above 100 in a month each ride is 14¢ each.
Reloading Pay-Per-Ride Balances
For Spin and LimeBikes there are ‘bonuses’ awarded when reloading your balance:
- Spin’s bonus is $1 extra for every $5 reloaded. So effectively every 6th ride is free.
- LimeBike’s bonuses are ‘1 free ride’ when you add $10, ‘3 free rides’ when you add $20, or ’10 free rides’ when you add $50.
Summary
Spin is cheaper or equal to LimeBike for pay-per-ride and subscriptions. Spin also offers the best reload bonus, especially if you have the EDU discount.
Referrals Rewards
- Spin offers a free ride up to $10 when you refer a friend with your personal code. Presumably this is a single ride up to 5 hours in length?
- LimeBike offers 3 free rides for you and 3 for the person you referred. Presumably these are all 30-minute rides.
If you appreciate this guide, please use my referral codes:
- LimeBike: RP37UXF
- Spin: DAVIDBR01
Summary
LimeBike has the most generous referral bonus.
Free Rides on LimeBike ‘Bonus Bikes’?
LimeBike offers free rides on so-called ‘Bonus Bikes’. If you ride that bike for at least ten minutes, they make your ride free. I noticed most of the ‘Bonus Bikes’ help relocate underused bikes to new locations where they may see more traffic, without relying on LimeBike employees to shuttle bikes around in vans. It’s not clear how to tell which specific bike in a cluster of bikes matches up to the Bonus Bike on the app map besides renting one and hopefully getting lucky.
Bike Quality and Features
The obvious difference is color (Orange for Spin and lime green for LimeBikes). All bikes have 3-speed twist shift, lights, fenders, a basket, a step-through frame, kickstand, bell, etc. Some LimeBikes have an adjustable cell-phone mount on the handlebars. None of the bikes come with helmets. The handlebars are a bit different on the bikes: I find the Spin bars to be pretty narrow for me, and I like the swept-back LimeBike handlebars best.
A Warning for Tall Riders
Not all LimeBikes are created equal: some have ‘normal’ seatpost clamps and long seatposts which fit me well, while others have a simple seatpost lever (see photo) and short seatposts. I have also had a few of the ‘normal’ seatpost LimeBikes where the seatpost was jammed all the way down, so beware and raise the seat before you rent! Spin seems to have the longest seatposts, and on some of their bikes you can extend the seat beyond the 2″ safety margin line or remove the seat entirely (time will tell if we see these orange bikes vandalized and seatless).
Apps
Download apps for the bikeshare operators here:
There is a third party app called Transit which allows one to check many transportation options at once. Right now it supports all local bus systems, Spin, Uber, and directions for biking and walking. Get it below and see these articles for more information!
Transit: Apple, Android
