OnFocus – At various points around town, Marshfield residents will begin to see bikes on racks near trails and hotspots in town. These bikes are part of the Wood County Health Department’s initiative to help get people out and about in their communities while giving them a cheap and accessible option for transportation.
The bikes are expected to be available by the end of the month or by early June. The four locations the bikes will be available at are:
- Wildwood Park
- Marshfield Clinic Health System YMCA
- Everett Roehl Marshfield Public Library
- Marshfield Fairgrounds
Bike racks can already be seen in these areas. These racks will be updated with the new Koloni branding in the near future but currently have “Zagster” signage on them.
If someone would like to rent a bike, they can simply download the free Koloni App on their smartphone or other device. After creating an account, users can enter in the bike ID number located on the bike or scan the QR code that will be on the bike. Rides will cost $1/hour to help cover the overall cost of the bikes and technology but riders can refer friends and earn free rides.
Bikes will be unlocked once paid for in the app and patrons will be able to ride them around town.
When riders are finished with their ride, they will bring the bike to one of the four locations and follow the instructions on how to end the ride with the app and lock the bike back up. Riders will get a referral code after they finish their ride to share with friends and family.
Wood County FoodWIse Nutrition Educator Hannah Wendels said the bikes will provide the community an opportunity to get out and explore while enjoying a healthy activity.
“Our bike share program focuses on making biking for all and that residents and visitors to the area will have increased access to transportation, recreation, and physical activity opportunities,” Wendels said. “We hope to better reach the needs of all community members and residents can explore the beautiful city of Marshfield this summer when they hop on a bike!”
Wisconsin Rapids has had the bike share for four years which includes 30 bikes and three accessible bikes.
“It’s been awesome,” Wendels said. “Usage has been very high. It went up quite a bit from the first year we had the app-based program once people got used to it, knew how to use it and knew where they were located.”
You can follow Wood County’s bike share program on Facebook to keep updated with the release date for the bikes and get future updates about the program.
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