From the Bike Lane to the Main Stage

When 75,000 music fans descend on Golden Gate Park for Outside Lands, or when Wrigley Field fills with 40,000 Cubs fans, cities face a transportation challenge that can make or break the event experience. At Lyft Urban Solutions, we've discovered that bikeshare isn't just an alternative transportation option—it's becoming the backbone of the transportation strategy of many popular events in cities across North America.

A Summer of Music Festivals

This past summer alone, bikeshare systems demonstrated their critical role in event transportation across multiple cities. 

In San Francisco, Bay Wheels facilitated over 11,000 trips during August's major concert series, with 83% of riders choosing e-bikes to navigate the city's hills. During Outside Lands, Bay Wheels saw 5,500 rides directly serving festival-goers, proving that bikeshare has evolved from a nice-to-have amenity to essential event infrastructure. The highest ridership day of all was the night of the Dead and Company’s final performance, registering over 2,000 trips to or from the concert. Our team deployed a temporary valet station in Golden Gate Park, which became a major terminal for riders accessing the festival.

_{Note: Map shows trips to Outside Lands from various stations across San Francisco. The pink line thickness indicates ride volume.}

During Chicago's Lollapalooza festival, our classic Divvy bikes hit a utilization rate of 6.6, meaning each bike was used nearly seven times throughout the day, while supporting approximately 6,000 daily rides to and from the festival grounds.

In Montreal, the BIXI program became the transportation hero during events ranging from Piknic Electronik to the Grand Prix, with thousands of bikes flowing in and out of bustling drop-off stations. While in Quebec City, the àVélo service shattered records during Festival d'été de Québec with over 160,000 trips in just 11 days—a 56% increase from the previous year. On the peak day alone, the system handled more than 19,000 trips. This happened while Quebec City was dealing with a major bus strike, showing that bikeshare emerged as the essential transit solution to keep festival-goers moving. The city's quick pivot to expanded bikeshare infrastructure—including extended bike paths and additional overflow bike parking—kept the event running smoothly. A valet station depot was created so that the greatest number of riders could use the service while having a specific place to drop or pick up a bike. 

Turning Sidewalk Clutter into Smooth Operations

Perhaps nowhere is the transformative power of strategic bikeshare deployment more evident than at Chicago's Wrigley Field. By installing modular docking stations and implementing valet services during Cubs games, Divvy didn't just move thousands of fans, it fundamentally improved the event experience.

Before implementing our docked solution, over 40-50% of Divvy rides ended with bikes and other dockless shared micromobility devices scattered around the stadium, creating visual clutter and accessibility challenges. 

After deploying strategic docking infrastructure, that number flipped dramatically: 70-75% of rides now end in organized docking stations. On high-attendance game days, the Divvy program moved over 1,800 fans via bikeshare, with more than 20 days exceeding 1,000 rides this past season. This isn't just about getting people to events—it's about creating cleaner, more accessible public spaces during peak crowd moments to help event-goers navigate a smooth transportation experience.

Preparing for the World Stage

What makes modern bikeshare systems particularly suited for major events is their flexibility and scalability. Our modular docking stations can be deployed temporarily for specific events, while valet services ensure bikes remain organized even during peak demand periods. 

As North American cities prepare to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with matches in cities powered by Lyft Urban Solutions including San Francisco, Boston, Toronto, Mexico City, and Guadalajara, as well as the 2026 Superbowl at Levi’s Stadium in the Bay Area, the lessons learned from this summer's events become even more critical. These aren't just large events; they're global showcases where transportation success or failure will leave a lasting impact on the event experience.

Lyft Urban Solutions operates some of the world's largest bikeshare systems, from Citi Bike's 30,000+ bikes in New York to the expansive networks of Bay Wheels, Capital Bikeshare, and Divvy, and this positions us uniquely to help cities rise to this challenge. We've proven that bikeshare can handle surge demand and reduce congestion around venues.

Looking further ahead to Olympic-scale events, the infrastructure and operational expertise we're building today will be essential. Cities that invest in robust, scalable bikeshare systems now are essentially building their event transportation infrastructure for the next decade. Every trip taken on a bike instead of a car reduces emissions, eases parking demand, and creates a more pleasant environment around venues. 

The stage is set, the infrastructure is proven, and our bikes are ready to roll. Let's pedal toward a future where getting to the big game or the headlining act is as much a part of the experience as the event itself.