A SoBi deluge at Hamilton City Hall protesting end of bike share

SoBi riders flooded Hamilton City Hall with bicycles Saturday protesting the end of the popular bike sharing network.

Cyclists started arriving early afternoon, photographing themselves with locked bikes on forecourt hand rails and lamp posts. By dinner time Saturday nearly 100 bikes had been dropped off.

The bike-share system is scheduled to come to an abrupt end June 1 after council narrowly voted down a motion, in an 8-8 tie, for emergency funding that would have kept riders riding to the end of 2020.

That council vote was spurred by a surprise decision by Uber to bail early on its bike share operating contract with the city, abandoning the 26,500 residents who pay to use the network.

SoBi advocates aren't ready to give up, however, as a fundraiser seeking $400,000 to save the bike-share network surpassed $54,000 Saturday with nearly 700 donors contributing.

The nonprofit group Hamilton Bike Share Inc. - which is willing to take over SoBi operations at least temporarily, if it can find a funder - kicked off the online fundraiser Thursday.

Grieved bike-share system users and supporters have taken to social media since the council vote to denounce the end of SoBi operations.

Following the vote against funding the system, council voted to mothball" the 900 bikes at a cost of $130,000.

- With files from Matthew Van Dongen