Both the Bike Sharing Blog and some of our Flickr contributors have spotted several of the SmartBikeDC racks being erected around town in the last week. The city’s first bike sharing company, which we first told you about last year, is expected to be in full gear in May, with a soft launch rumored by the end of this month. The list of planned bike rental locations can be found here. The rack pictured is in front of the Reeves Center at 14th and U Streets NW.

In other excellent bike sharing news, Via Richard Layman, the U.S. House of Representatives has issued a request for proposals to begin a bike sharing program on Capitol Hill. The contract announcement seeks a company able to provide a means to make 30 shared bicycles available to House members and staff.

This is a very good thing. As Layman rightly notes, because many Hill staffers get free parking, far too many of them have an incentive to drive to work, even if they live relatively close by. Creating more incentives for government employees to bike to their offices, or to meetings downtown during the day, can only serve to improve congestion in the city. Even if it’s baby steps, we welcome the House’s effort and initiative here.

Photo by ericgundersen