Amadeus Consulting, a custom software development company, created the enterprise application system behind Boulder B-cycle's bike sharing program, which is scheduled to roll into Boulder on May 20, 2011.
Leveraging Microsoft Silverlight™, among other tools, Amadeus Consulting developed B-cycle's kiosk interface, e-commerce platform, Web services, Web-based administrative tool and iPhone™ and Android™ applications. The Boulder community can pick up and drop off B-cycle's signature red bikes at any bike center in the city with daily, weekly, monthly or yearly memberships.
"The efficiency of the B-cycle program is due in large part to Amadeus Consulting's technical expertise," said Lewis Wolman, executive director for Boulder B-cycle. "They integrated several complicated systems, including credit card payments, Google maps, solar-powered kiosks and RFID tags on the bikes which will make it easy for the Boulder community to use the bikes."
Boulder B-cycle is a nonprofit organization that collaborates with, but is separate from, the City of Boulder, B-cycle and Denver B-cycle. The first phase will include 12 bike stations in downtown Boulder, starting at Boulder Canyon and ending at 30th Street, with future expansion to 150 bikes at 15 stations including the University of Colorado campus.
Amadeus Consulting's technical solution for the bike-sharing system includes:
- iPhone and Android applications allow riders to sign up for membership, locate B-cycle bike stations, access their Web account and visit the B-cycle website
- An easy-to-use administrative system that manages a variety of business processes including bike inventory, servicing and user statistics
- Provides a secure custom e-commerce engine to handle B-cycle's payment transactions
- Radio frequency identification (RFID) tags that prevent theft
B-cycle programs have previously launched in Denver, Chicago, Des Moines, Honolulu and San Antonio, with more coming in 2011.
"We are particularly excited to see B-cycle rolling into Boulder since we are headquartered here and know how important sustainability is to the community," said John Basso, chief information officer at Amadeus Consulting. "The bike sharing program in Denver exceeded all expectations last season, with more than 100,000 rides totaling more than 200,000 miles. Boulder is such a bike-friendly, ecologically conscious city that we expect to see even more explosive growth here."