Dublinbikes

I think Dublin Bikes is fantastic! I moved a bit further away from the city centre (~35 mins walk) so Dublin Bikes has become my main form of transport next to walking. There are 3 stations near where I live there’s also 2 stations right near my college, and one opposite the bus stop I use so it couldn’t be any more convenient. I never cycled in the city before as the last time I’ve cycled was when I was a kid in my estate so it took a while to get used to the rules of the road (I don’t drive), but there are many cycle lanes and for just 20 euro yearly membership with the first 30 minutes free is such a great deal. I was planning on getting my own bike initially until all friends showered me with their stories of having had their bikes stolen on more than one occasion, so the security, durability and not having to worry about things like theft or bike maintenance is great. The basket at the front to put your bags, inbuilt lights, 3 gears and sturdy frame make the bikes very reliable.
Also there are various apps to check if there are bikes available at stations around you or whether you can park your bike, I use the official Dublin Bikes app but there are others like Rothar which also gives info on whether you can buy a 3 day pass or not.
The only negative is sometimes finding an empty stand to park especially in the city centre as some stands are pretty popular. I don’t find this problem at all on the weekdays where I can always get find a bike and park at almost every station, but the weekend 2 out of the 3 stands near where I live are empty by afternoon and a lot of the stands in the city centre are full. So the App comes in really handy so your not wandering around looking for an empty space.
Overall: Well build bikes, great form of transport and really cheap!

Dublinbikes is amazing. 20 € annual membership that allows you to use the bikes for up to 30 minutes for free. Also if you do come across the occasional full bike stand, you can use the terminals to locate the next closest and it extends you another 15 minutes to get to the next bike stand.
Its really great value, generally the bikes are good quality and they also move the bikes to ensure busy areas have bikes available (such as city centre locations).
Also this morning I got a lovely wee gift in the inchicore bike stand, that had a bag celebrating 5 years on the road, with a free bike cover and yellow vest — Thanks Dublin bikes!

The Dublin Bike scheme is (by a long way) the best initiative from DCC in… possibly ever! They’re cheap, easy to use, and well maintained. They make the city so much smaller and easier to get around. I’ve heard that they’re planning a further expansion (over doubling the number of stations and bikes) — great news!
One of the best things about an increased number of cyclists on the city centre roads is that it’s somewhat slowed traffic down. Many of the new cyclists are less experienced than regular bike users, and I find that cars give a wider berth when I’m on a Dublin Bike than on my regular one. Anything that makes the city streets a little safer for pedestrians and cyclists is a good thing in my book (although regular motorists in the city may have a different take on that).
If you’re afraid of being stung by bike thieves, Dublin bikes are absolutely ideal. You go from point a to b without worrying about finding appropriate, secure bike parking. I’m never comfortable leaving my own bike on the street — and I usually regret it when I do. I cycle into the city all the time on my own bike, park it in the DCC off street bike park in Drury Street carpark and use the Dublin Bikes to get around the city. I don’t have to worry at all about bike security. Fleet Street carpark also has bike racks on site (though less secure looking).
They’re chunky and robust, and I find I rarely use anything other than third gear, but they’re also really comfortable, easily adjustable and easy to ride. Absolutely worth their weight in gold!

Dublinbikes, what a great and handy addition to the city. Last week I had visitors staying with me and they were commenting on how nice an addition the bikes are to the city and just having such an option available. It seems over the past 10 years that most major European cities have adopted similar schemes and I am glad that Dublin is one of them.
You can easily pick up a Dublin bike at multiple points in the city and drop off in another. There are many locations and the first half hour is free. You can actually avoid paying anything if you are strategic with your bike route.

I’ve always cycled around this city. That is until my bike was stolen last May. But by that stage I had ordered my Dublinbikes card. A tenner for a year? Too hard to turn down. It would come in handy on occasion and sure if I used it a handful of times, it’s be worth the measly two pints-​worth it cost.
But I recently moved and there’s a bike station near me and the service is worth 6+ stars to me now.
It’s fantastic and the bikes are always there to ferry you to a much closer point to your destination.

The launch of DublinBikes roughly co-​incided with the financial collapse … so we had no money to link the two tram lines.
An Irish solution to an Irish problem … the tram lines are now linked by bicycle!
DublinBikes — Great — I love them!
Padraig O’Dea Eaton Square Monkstown

Probably the best (almost) free thing in Dublin…
How many times am I late, and I need to be 3 – 4 streets away but there’s no direct bus linel, and I’m wearing a skirt and heels… DublinBikes eased my stress many times with step-​through bikes that bring me from one end of the city to the other and I don’t need to bring my leg up to get on !
Yes the bikes, though robust, are awkward to ride for a mountain bike user like me, the handlebar is wobbly and too wide for ladies, I barely get to use anything but it’s 3^rd speed and most of the time I give up cycling because I’d need extra speeds but hey, they’re super easy rides uphill…
That’s my 2^nd year using it, and apart from the 10e subscription, I think I only paid 1 € one month because from one end of the network to the other, say from Charlemont to Parnell Square, you’d only need 20 – 25 min so that’s free. Madness !
I did get the occasional flat tyre and inoperative brakes but the beauty with this system is that I dont have to worry about getting that fixed, I just report it, happy days !
Like Dave said, the app is quite vital to have if you’re using the bike at peak times because you don’t want to be stuck 5min before 9 with your bike station being full.

I think Dubliners’ attitudes to cyclists boils down to two words «Smug Hooligans». That’s being polite, feel free to throw in any combination of four-​letter words in there. But here’s the thing, all those cyclists are right, there’s no better way to get around Dublin.
€ 10 get you a year subscription, and provided you don’t keep the bike for more than 30 minutes, the ride is free. After that, there’s a sliding scale, but it’s not too steep.
The bikes themselves are… robust. That’s a polite way of saying they’re clunky but functional. Like a Soviet tower block. But they’re got two wheels and go, and have a goofy charm about them. If Tom Hanks was a bicycle, he’d be a Dublinbike.
The docking stations are easy to use, but be careful since some are more popular than others. Dublinbikes have been quick to try to work around this, extending the more popular stations, and will hopefully add some new locations in the near future.
If I’d recommend one thing, it’s to get one of the smartphone apps that tell you the status of the docking stations for the bikes. I use BikeDroid for Android, but there are others.

I’ll get my favourite jokey dismissal of Dublin Bikes out of the way now:
«Give it a week and we’ll be walking across the Liffey on dumped Dublin bikes.»
Done.
Successful iterations of the scheme have been in place for nigh on many years on the continent, so it was only a matter of time til the green transport concept bloomed here. Now, after a season in operation (following what felt like the longest installation process ever) Dublin’s on-​street bike rental program is really rolling.
.er.
The idea is simple and successful: inexpensive rentals (3 Day Ticket is just € 2, a 10-​day Long Term Hire Card costs € 10) of sturdy, well maintained three-​gear city bikes that allow locals and tourists alike to pootle about the Dublin City Centre and dump it at any of the 40 stations in town. (Regretfully, those locations are kept in a tight radius, so if you’re on a DB with plans to head over to Phoenix Park, save some energy for the long pedal back to the closest station… Greek St if you don’t mind a few hills, Ormond Quay otherwise.)
The bikes themselves are all that a good rental should be;durable, manageable for cyclists with basic experience and capable of carrying at least a few things besides yourself. Ireland has no fixed helmet law for bike folk, and there’s unspoken bloodsport among city motorists when it comes to sharing lanes, so mind yourself at busy intersections and stop lights.

Bikes are the way forward I tells ya!
As Quentin said below everyone thought these would be a massive failure in Dublin, it was predicted that every scum bag in town would have a dublin bikein their bedroom. But no! Scum bags obviously don’t like these too much cause the scheme is doing brilliantly!
Now there is the matter of giving credit card details and you get charged for the amount of time your out and about on these bikes but the great thing is that the first half hour is free! So you want to get to say, Heuston from Stephens Green, maybe you would have been lazy and gotten a taxi or tired yourself out and walked all the way, now you can hop on a dublinbike, cycle up the quays and TaDa you’re there well within half an hour and for free! How much better can it get? Well it has a basket to hold your bag and a light so you can see (and be seen) and it is a healthy option!
Now the downsides, there are only three gears which are not great in some cases and as was already pointed out there are no helmets which is a big «no no» in my book, I’m in the «helmets should be mandatory for all cyclists» camp.
Other than those two negatives Dublin Bikes is the best thing to arrive in Dublin! So to use a Dublin phrase, On yer Bike!

In every other civilised city in the world there is a bike scheme — something the locals and tourists alike can use to get around the city quickly and take in the smells and views and avoid the dog poo.
Dublin was always the exception, I think we were all of the opinion that the bikes would be nicked or damaged and that would be worse than not having them at all.
Happily the vandalism issue seems to have been addressed in the form of lots of clever security tricks and we now have dublinbikes — a service spanning most of the city with drop points/​bike racks scattered all over the place (there are 40 of them). The bikes themselves have built-​in lights and locks and are really a great addition to the city.
You have to pre register to use them and part with precious credit card details etc… so it is not something you can use on a whim (well, the first time anyway). However, once you are registered (on the website above) you are free to roam the city as quickly as you like.
Cycle helmets are not provided but I would strongly advise you buy one and just have it with you on the days you think it likely you are going to use the bikes!

I had used a similar service of public bike hire in other cities in Europe and was thrilled to hear that one was coming to Dublin. The service is great, and I’ve taken a few spins on the bikes and although as David said, they wouldn’t be great for long distances, they are grand for spinnin around the city.
I have two gripes with the bikes however, firstly the 150 € deposit, understandable, but makes the bikes unavailable to many. Secondly, they look ridiculous, like they were recycled from broken down Daleks. But at least they’re functional.

Love it, I’ve been looking forward to the bikes arriving for ages. They are all located in brilliant spots and it’s a super idea. It’s already great to see everyone cycling around, and I was excited to see the truck that picks up the bikes from one place and drops them to the next… I was wondering how that was going to work!

OK OK i know there are a few people a bit sceptical of this new scheme. But i think its a fantastic idea and about time we had something like it in Dublin.
I took a spin on one of the bikes the other day and found it easy to use and a very enjoyable/​efficiant way of getting around the city.
I had used the service in Paris a bit, where a lot of people are saying the scheme hasn’t worked the way it should, well i would protest against that view. As long as Dublin City Council hold up their end of the bargain in keeping the bikes in good condition then i dont see why this project wont take off!
The bikes are a little clumsy and definitely not for long distances but Dublin isn’t very big and you should be finished with the bike within 30mins which means its totally free!!!
150e deposit is simply a formality and if you have a credit card you should have no trouble with it what so ever since the money is returned to you once the bike is returned safely. just note that if you use a foreign bank card the money can take longer to be returned but credit cards should have no problem.