The Two-Wheeled Amenity

With corporations, colleges and numerous cities around the country realizing the appeal of bike-sharing programs, it seems only logical that luxury apartment buildings wouldn’t be far behind. Last month, as New York’s own Citi Bike began circulating, the Related Companies added bicycles as the newest amenity in 10 Manhattan rental properties.

“It’s like taking a stroll through an English garden,” said Penelope Crabtree, describing the ride she took on the path by the Hudson River one recent weekend. Although Ms. Crabtree, a longtime resident of Related’s Tribeca Tower, has her own bike, a friend was visiting from out of town and wanted to join her on the excursion. With the new amenity, the pair were able to spend several days cycling together during the visit. “I will probably only use it for guests,” Ms. Crabtree said of the service.

In early 2012, Related and the bike-share business Zagster introduced a pilot program at Related’s Boston rental, One Back Bay. “They were looking to provide bikes for the residents,” where the residents “wouldn’t have to do anything at all,” said Timothy J. Ericson, Zagster’s chief executive and one of its founders.

Zagster provided the bicycles, and residents began to use them. “I definitely got to know the city in a much more intimate way,” said Lindsey O’Neill, 32, who lives in One Back Bay. After a few months of riding, she found that she enjoyed having a bike so much that she bought her own.

“It gives you flexibility,” said Daria Salusbury, a senior vice president of Related.

Last month, Zagster and Related rolled out the service in New York, installing two to four bikes in some of Related’s rental properties, several of which are near the Hudson River or Central Park — prime cycling territory.

Ernie and Inge Popke reside in one such building, the Westport near Columbus Circle. They have lived there for about four years and have their own bicycles. “We have guests quite frequently that come into town,” Mrs. Popke said, and she and her husband are “thrilled” with the bright blue Zagster bikes in the building garage. “Getting decent bikes from rentals isn’t the easiest,” Mr. Popke added. This, however, was “very easy.”

To use the amenity, residents sign up online, providing a phone number and credit card information. They can either reserve a bike on the Zagster Web site or select one in person. Then they text the number listed on the bike to Zagster, which responds with a code for the lockbox attached to the back of each bike. They enter the code, remove the key, unlock the frame and off they go. Once they’ve taken the bike back to the original location, they simply text the word “end.” The lockbox code changes after every use. “It’s a whole James Bond thing,” Ms. Crabtree said.

Residents can use the Zagster bikes at no cost for up to two hours, after which they pay $5 for the remainder of the day. The price structure reinforces the idea that the share is meant for recreational purposes, rather than commuting, which would make the bikes unavailable to others for most of the day. (Citi Bike, therefore, could serve as a supplement, rather than a replacement.)

When asked about New York’s savvy thieves, Mr. Ericson expressed optimism. “Nothing is theft-proof,” he said, “but theft-resistant is the goal there. We use custom nuts and bolts on the bikes, which make them very difficult to steal.”

It’s too soon to gauge the popularity of the amenity here in New York. One Related resident, Justin Gamble, 36, said that when he realized he had to fill out an online profile for Zagster as well as Citi Bike, he decided to hold off to see if the Citi Bike might be sufficient for his purposes. Others weren’t yet aware of the share, or thought it was a great idea in theory but didn’t know if they would actually use it.

Still, if accessibility is the ultimate goal, then Ms. Salusbury put it well: “How much more convenient can it be than in the garage of your building?”

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