Photo: Jay Willett/WBZ NewsRadio
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — October marks Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Boston’s signature Bluebikes are going pink in order to raise awareness and funds.
Bluebikes are one of the most popular bike rental programs in the Metro Boston area and some will now be decked out in pink with ribbon decals, the color and symbol that represents the month.
Every time a rider rents one of these special bikes, Blue Cross Blue Shield will donate $1 to the Ellie Fund, which supports breast cancer patients across the state.
“I guess the benefit of riding the pink one, other than the blue one [is that] I think it would make it a little more appealing and obviously to know that [by] renting [a pink bike] your giving back, that’s definitely important,” said one person.
The ride share service Lyft is responsible for handling the Bluebikes and says that once the fundraising reaches $10,000, they will donate an additional $10,000 to the fund on top of that.
Reactions to the special bikes have been positive and people seem to be in favor of the new limited redesign.
“I think its awesome, I think it’s a good way to bring some awareness to breast cancer, it’s a good month,” said one person.
For some, the cause is important because it hits close to home.
“My mother died due to breast cancer in ’69,” said one man.
“I would hope people would take those bikes rather than a different one,” he continued.
According to the American Cancer Society, breast cancer is the most common cancer in women other than skin cancers and accounts for almost 1 in 3 of new female cancers in the US, however deaths have been steadily declining since 1989.
The pink bikes will be limited throughout the city as only 100 bikes are in circulation for the month of October.
WBZ NewsRadio’s Jay Willett (@JayWillettWBZ) reports.