OREANDA-NEWS. May 3, 2012. The bicycles of the BalticBike rental service will return to the streets of the Latvian capital of Riga and its nearby seaside resort of Jurmala for the summer season.

BalticBike has now become an integral part of Riga and Jurmala. Originally popular with tourists, the bicycles are increasingly being used by local residents as a green form of transportation. Last summer, overall rentals more than tripled to 15 000, compared to a year earlier. This year, environmentally-conscious tourists and local residents can take advantage of improved bicycle stand locations, as many of the rental stations have been moved to better and more busy areas, such as popular cafйs, restaurants, hotels, bars or shops.

BalticBike bicycles are available at 19 stands – 16 in Riga, and 3 in Jurmala. A map of all BalticBike stands can be found at www.balticbike.lv along with convenient maps with route suggestions for those who want to explore the beauty and secrets of Riga and Jurmala.

In 2011, the proportion of local residents who rent BalticBikes has increased to 70%. It represents a change in the trend, as in 2010 the BalticBike bicycles were equally popular among both residents and guests of Riga and Jurmala. This indicates that due to the competitive price of EUR 1 (Ls 0.70) per hour, BalticBike bicycles are becoming a very popular form of transportation among residents of Riga and Jurmala. BalticBike rental service is owned and operated by airBaltic.

airBaltic serves over 60 destinations from its home base in Riga, Latvia. From every one of these, airBaltic offers convenient connections via North Hub Riga to its network spanning Europe, Scandinavia, Russia, CIS and the Middle East.