Rentable Helmets Now Available with Hubway
By April Newell 11-15-13
HelmetHub Machine
Photographer: April Newell WEBN-Boston Reporter
Grab a helmet with that bike. Boston’s bicycle sharing program is now making rides safer for cyclists.
HelmetHub is the city’s first-ever bike helmet vending machine. It is at the Boylston Street and Massachusetts Ave. Hubway bike docking station. Bikers use a touchscreen to rent a safe, sanitized helmet for 24 hours. The helmets are only 2 dollars a rental and many bikers say they plan on using them.
“I think a helmet is definitely an important thing to have when biking in the city, but it was hard to justify buying a helmet just to have handy when you wanted to use a bike,” said monthly Hubway subscriber Gabriel Nesser.
The new machine is just a trial for now.
“The HelmetHub system will shut down after Thanksgiving along with the bike share program,” said Nicole Friedman, Director of Bicycle Programs for the City of Boston. “We are receiving great feedback about the program from bikers and will be implementing suggestions into the machines for next year.”