Planning is starting to ramp up for CoGo, the newly-branded Columbus bike share system. Organizers hope to have 30 stations installed and 300 bikes available for use by the end of July. They have also released a map showing where the stations will be; the system will extend south to Schiller Park, west to COSI, east to Parsons Avenue and north to 4th Avenue in the Short North.

Alta Bicycle Share’s Heather Bowden, project director for the Columbus system, explained that the stations will be assembled in a local warehouse this June; “they are quick to install since they don’t need to be attached to the ground and they’re solar-powered, so they don’t even need an outlet.”

Annual and daily passes will be available, with a special “founding member” pre-sale starting in June, once the CoGo website is up.

Marketing efforts are also kicking off this week; look for CoGo on social media and at all the major festivals this summer, spreading the word about the system in advance of its launch.

Alta has worked on bike share systems in Chattanooga, Washington DC, Boston, New York and Melbourne. The Columbus system will be similar in size to the one in Chattanooga, which was launched last summer and features 300 bikes spread across just 2.5 square miles downtown.

Bowden says that the Chatanooga system has been successful, but she sees even greater potential for success in Columbus; “we’re a bigger city, we have more density, more of an established biking culture, and a very supportive Mayor,” adding that she’s already received inquiries from “interested parties” asking about future expansion plans.

The city is providing the initial capital investment to set up the system and run it for the first year. Future operating funds plus any additional money required for expansion will have to be raised through sponsorships and membership fees.

More information on CoGo can be found at parks.columbus.gov.

(Click to enlarge map)