The price of a Citi Bike annual membership jumped 9% this month, and some members didn’t even know.

“I think all cities benefit from more bikes on the roads and fewer cars,” rider Max Buckner said. “So I don’t see any reason that we should be discouraging that. That seems dumb to me.”

What You Need To Know

The price increase that started Jan. 5 is the third hike for Citi Bike in the past 18 months 

The city does have a revenue-sharing agreement with Lyft, which operates Citi Bike, and renegotiated its contract in 2023 to get some price caps

Mayor Zohran Mamdani says he is focused on making biking safer and more accessible, but did not provide a specific plan to address Citi Bike’s rising prices

The fee for full-price annual members went up by $20 to $239. E-bike and classic bike overage fees increased two cents to 27 cents per minute for members. For nonmembers, it went up three cents to 41 cents a minute, and the fee cap for trips under 45 minutes went up 40 cents to $5.40.

Riders think the new mayor, who ran on free buses, should also do something about the cost of biking.

“Hey Zohran, do something,” Buckner said. 

Mayor Zohran Mamdani himself is a Citi Bike rider, so he said he understands. He said he wants to find a way to make Citi Bike more affordable in order to reach more New Yorkers — but he was short on details.

“These are not intellectual issues that New Yorkers are facing,” Mamdani said. “They face them every time they take out their phone or they have their key fob and they unlock that bike. And we know that that’s even felt at a higher level when you’re not a Citi Bike member. So look, the city has entered into an agreement with Citi Bike prior to me being the mayor. This is going to be one of the focuses of our administration, to figure out how we can not only make it safer but also more affordable to ride a bike across the city.”

Citi Bike does offer a reduced-fare program that people with economic challenges can qualify for, and their fee will stay at $5 a month.

Mamdani took one step towards making biking better by having a bump removed from the bike path at the foot of the Williamsburg Bridge, which he hinted was also a symbolic gesture.

“We’ve said time and again that in this administration, there will be no problem too big for us to take on. And no issue too small for us to focus on.”

It’s unclear what action Mamdani could take to tackle the price of Citi Bike. The city does receive some of the revenue from Citi Bike as part of its agreement, which was renegotiated in 2023 to aid expansion.

As part of that, the city got price caps for e-bike rides. Citi Bike had cited tariffs as one reason for the need to raise prices but wouldn’t elaborate.

In a subsequent statement, Citi Bike said: “This adjustment reflects our continued investment in expanding Citi Bike to underserved neighborhoods…. without taxpayer subsidies.”