Official bike ride: City manager hosts downtown tour Friday

It seemed like the thing to do, getting Brownsville City Manager Noel Bernal to lead a public bike tour of downtown, especially since May is National Bike Month.

Joel Garza Jr., director of multimodal transportation for the city, thought it would be a great way to promote safe cycling, show people what’s happening downtown and spotlight the new BCycle bike-share program Brownsville launched on May 21 in partnership with the Lower Rio Grande Valley Development Council. Harlingen and McAllen launched their BCycle programs the same day.

Bernal agreed it sounded like a good idea, though he was more used to off-road trails, and the inaugural “Ride With the City Manager” event was scheduled for Friday, May 28, Garza said. The ride, which departs Dean Porter Park near Sams Memorial Pool at 8:30 a.m., is open to everyone. A limited number of bikes and helmets will be available on a first come, first serve basis for those who don’t have them, Garza said.

“I just want to invite everyone to show up if they can,” he said. “We understand it is a Friday morning and so those that work cannot.”

The five-mile cruise will last about an hour and feature on-street and off-street trails winding through downtown and parts of Texas Southmost College and the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. The tour of downtown and its renovation / redevelopment highlights is better enjoyed on two wheels at a leisurely pace rather than trying to see it from a car, Garza said.

He’s hoping for a good turnout even if the ride does fall on a work day. Garza, before coming to Brownsville last year, worked for the city of Harlingen as special projects director and was in charge of monthly social bike rides that drew 100 to 150 riders at a time, he said.

“We hope we get a big crowd,” Garza said. “It’s always neat when you see a large group of bikes on the road.”

He added that “this is not a race” but rather a go-at-your-own-pace type of event. Meanwhile, the newly BCycle bike-share program is a bit more user friendly than Brownsville’s and Harlingen’s previous experience with bike sharing, through a company called Zagster, Garza said. While a smart phone was necessary to download Zagster’s app, BCycle’s kiosk accepts traditional forms of payment as well, he said.

“BCycle can use an app, credit card or cash,” Garza said. “It has different options for folks. You can even do a text message to open the bike. I think that’s really neat.”

Brownsville has 25 BCycle bikes and four stations. Four are located in or near downtown, at La Plaza at Brownsville Terminal, Dean Porter Park, Linear Park, and the intersection of Palm Boulevard and Belden Trail. The fifth kiosk is located at the Brownsville Metro Northside Transfer Station off Ruben Torres Boulevard.

Garza said BCycle bikes can be rented for $2 an hour and passes are also available: $6 for 24 hours, $15 for seven days, $30 for 30 days and $65 for one year. With all passes, the bikes should be docked once per hour at a BCycle station to avoid usage charges. Maintenance and rotation of the bikes is being handled by the development council, Garza said.

Depending on how Friday’s ride comes off, Brownsville may be able to look forward to more of the same, though maybe evenings or weekends so more people can participate, he said. At any rate, Garza hopes to make social rides a regular thing in Brownsville as it is in Harlingen.

“That would be great,” he said. “Obviously Brownsville is a lot bigger. There’s more traffic than what we’re used to in Harlingen, but that is the intent.”


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EVENT INFO:

Ride With the City Manager

Friday, May 28, 8:30 a.m.

Dean Porter Park entrance