Bike sharing comes to Bellevue

BELLEVUE, Neb. (WOWT) - Biking in Bellevue just got a whole lot easier.

The city’s first Heartland Bike Share station opened today.

“I see it introducing bicycling to a lot of people,” Rusty Hike, mayor of Bellevue said. “I think people will actually jump on one of these and find out they can be anywhere in town in a matter of a few minutes off the trail.”

This station is Heartland Bike Shares’ 78th in the Omaha Metro. Riders can grab a bike here and return it to any other station.

The new location was funded in partnership with the City of Bellevue, the Papio Missouri River NRD, and the Bellevue Community Foundation.

The executive director of the Heartland Bike Share, Benny Foltz, says this is a progressive step for the city especially with the growing popularity of biking during the pandemic.

“Adding this bike share station here in Bellevue connects the dots of our footprint where we have two stations in Papillion now, we have a whole bunch of stations in Aksarben and South Omaha,” Foltz said. “This is another spot where people can get on or off their bike if they’re using the bike share station.”

The station already seems to be a hit, a bike patrol officer with Bellevue PD tried it out saying they need some of those on the force.

Denise Perrone, a member of the Bellevue Bike Club took one for a spin and thinks it’s a great way to get others introduced to biking.

“It’s a lot easier than a real bike and they might be afraid at first but if they can give it a try they will love it. They will definitely love it,” Perrone said.

The bike share station also has an air pump and a fix-it station for people to use if they have any issues with their bikes.

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