A Alameda das Linhas de Torres bike pathThe GIRA bicycle lane, although not yet completed, already allows people to use their bikes more safely and comfortably in the heart of the Lumiar parish. A number of stations of the GIRA shared bicycle system have been installed along this axis; five of these points went into operation this Thursday, EMEL revealed.
You can now use the following GIRA stations along the Lines:
- R. Fernando Curado Ribeiro/Al. Linhas de Torres;
- R. Francisco Stromp/Al. Linhas de Torres;
- Al. Das Linhas de Torres/Hosp. Pulido Valente;
- Al. Linhas de Torres/R. Ladislau Patrício;
- Al. Linhas de Torres/Estrada da Torre.
Until now, the closest GIRA stations for users were those next to the Campo Grande and Telheiras Metro stations. There are more GIRA stations to be opened on the Alameda das Linhas de Torres axis and the bike path is still to be completed - the section in front of the renovated Campo Grande bus terminal is missing.
Lisbon's shared bicycle network now has 101 stations in operation, representing a total of around 1,900 bicycle docks, with a further 44 stations due to be installed by the end of September. The system currently has more than 900 bicycles in circulation. Last week the first five stations in the parish of OlivaisFour more are expected to open soon.
GIRA targeted for vandalism
GIRA bikes have been frequent victims of vandalism in recent monthsEMEL revealed earlier this week. “In the last 15 days alone, GIRA has suffered around 100 acts of vandalism, most of them theftsThis has affected the whole operation, from the availability of the outdoor teams, who have to split their work between checking, collecting and replacing bikes and trying to recover the stolen GIRAs, to the work of the mechanic teams, as the damage caused requires a lot of time to repair."the company wrote in a statement.
According to EMEL, the stations that have been particularly targeted are those at Gare do Oriente; Centro Comercial Vasco da Gama; Praça do Município; Terminal Cruzeiros (Avenida Infante Henrique); Largo Frei Heitor Pinto; Rua do Arco Cego; Avenida 5 Outubro and Avenida Igreja. The stolen bikes have been easily recovered because they have GPS sensors, but the costs of these acts are around 200 euros per bike.
EMEL, which has been responsible for the entire management of the GIRA system since its internalization in May last year, now states that "the acts of vandalism that have targeted the GIRA bicycles must not harm the citizens who use this practical and fast means of transportation every day"so, “in addition to being focused on minimizing and remedying these actions, which cause considerable damage to Lisbon's heritage, with the collaboration of the PSP"will continue to expand the service with new stations according to schedule.
