In October 2015, I attended my first NABSA conference where I participated in a workshop on creating a new data standard for the bikeshare industry. After hard work by Mitch Vars, Mike Frumin, Marcin Pyla, and so many other bikeshare leaders, one month later, GBFS was born.

GBFS enabled leading mobility apps, like Google Maps, Citymapper or Transit, to make bikeshare information accessible to a wider audience, and incorporate bikeshare into multimodal trips. It allowed for greater public oversight over bikeshare, such as when advocates in New York City verified a sudden drop in the number of available Citi Bikes and pressed for service improvements. It was the foundation of and incorporated into the Mobility Data Specification (MDS), which guarantees cities the data they need to manage the bikes and scooters on their streets.

I want to be a NABSA Board Member to champion the values – transparency, collaboration, innovation — that resulted in GBFS, and help maintain a bikeshare tradition that is open and fair.