When public transit stops, bikes roll: Measuring the impacts of public transit strikes on bicycle sharing use in Montréal

Public transit strikes reduce bus and metro service, prompting reliance on other modes of transport such as bicycle-sharing and testing the resilience of the transport system. This study examines the relationship between two public transit strikes in Montréal, Canada, in 2025 and ridership of BIXI, the city’s bicycle-sharing system. Using data on BIXI trip history, weather, Bike Score®, public transit infrastructure, and the Canadian census, we estimate multilevel regression models with crossed random effects to predict the number of BIXI trips at an aggregated hexagon level. Our results show a statistically positive association between public transit strike days and BIXI ridership. On average, ridership increased by 18% on strike days compared to a typical weekday with regular public transit service in 2025. These findings suggest that operational adaptations, such as increased staffing and bicycle redistribution, enhance the contribution of bicycle-sharing systems to transport system resilience during disruptions.