A Libertarian changed his mind about using a Seattle bike share
Aug 18, 2017, 6:13 AM | Updated: 9:46 am

Hey, check out my bike! (John Curley, 成人X站 Radio)
(John Curley, 成人X站 Radio)
John Curley has been critical of any bike share in Seattle. So how is it possible that he could change his mind about something he has called “socialist” in the past?
“Then I realized that I鈥檓 supporting private enterprise,” Curley said. 鈥淭he other one (Pronto!) I was forced to participate in it by having my tax dollars support it. I wasn’t given a choice whether or not I wanted to get on the bike. The government just said, 鈥楬ey, we think this is a good idea. We are going to pour money into this failure.鈥”
RELATED: 3 days commuting via a Seattle bike share
Seattle’s previous failed bike share, Pronto!, was largely publicly funded. The city even bought it out for before shutting it down. But the bike share companies currently setting up shop in Seattle are quite different than the Pronto system. First of all, as Curley points out, they are private companies competing to become Seattle’s main bike share (SDOT will make some money off of them, however). They also don’t use stations. You drop them off wherever you are.
In Curley’s case, he picked up a Limebike from Eastlake near the 成人X站 Radio studios and rode it down to Safeco Field to watch a Mariners game — avoiding traffic and parking.
鈥淚 got there in plenty of time; soon enough to see the first batter, get the second pitch and hit a home run against the M’s,” Curley said.
鈥淥verall, it was terrific,” he said. “One dollar was all I got charged. It was fast, easy, and efficient. I didn鈥檛 wear a helmet; made you feel a little bit like an outlaw, especially as I rode past a bunch of cops without a helmet.”
RELATED: Seattle enforcing bike helmet law less and less
While he found it convenient and cheap to use, there are some drawbacks.
“I will do it again in the future, but you will never win the Tour de France on one of these things,” Curley said. “They are clunky and slow. At first, I felt really embarrassed to be on it. Because you got the big basket and you look like the Wicked Witch of the West. It鈥檚 just not something you want to see yourself on. I passed by a plate glass window and watched myself on it — not the best look.”