We have Zipcars …why not Zipbikes?

It looks like Washington DC will the first US city to introduce a bike-sharing program. You pay a yearly membership fee of $40 and then you can sign out one of 120 bikes parked at 10 locations in the city.

We in Boston need this. The T is slow, traffic is bad, and parking is nonexistent. The bikes could be especially useful to students and researchers. If there were bikes parked near all the major universities and campuses, students taking classes or doing research at different schools/campuses could more quickly get around. I wonder if researchers from different institutions around Boston would collaborate more if there were more and faster ways of getting across town? It seems so mundane but distance and commuting can be real barriers to collaboration.

Bike-sharing (and biking in general) could however be limited by two factors: snow (winter) and crazy Massachusetts drivers.