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Richmond Mayor Dwight C. Jones’ office hopes to have a bike-share system operational this summer and has signed an agreement with a Canadian vendor to provide the technology.

Bike-share systems, implemented in a growing number of cities worldwide, allow users to check out bicycles from docking stations for a fee and return them when finished.

Jones’ press secretary, Tammy D. Hawley, said the city is hoping for an official launch in July or August, but said the city is making its first payment to the vendor, Bewegen, next week, which will allow them to begin constructing the equipment.

The city is paying $393,000 to operate the system for a year. The city had initially hoped to launch with 30 docking stations and 300 bikes, but the final contract pares that to 20 stations and 220 bikes.

Hawley said the city is looking at the first year of operation as a first step and will consider expanding the system depending on how popular it is.

The city is still deciding where stations will be located and how much it will cost to rent bikes, she said.

Typical prices in other bike-share systems are about $75 for an annual membership, $15 for a three-day pass, and $6 for a one-day pass.