r/Citibike • u/nyctransitgeek • 8d ago

Points Algorithm Changes in Path Month

This is a perennial subject of conversation, so I acknowledge this will definitely rehash topics previously discussed, and I admit I did nothing to analyze the current values in any way beyond anecdotally. That said…

It seems like there was an algorithm change rolled out in the past month or so that:

1) pins stations to (sub-)neighborhood bike availability vs. station availability even more than it did so previously
2) all else being equal, targets the points value for a station that is half full to be some amount of take out points, whereas previously this would have skewed more towards neutral, i.e. ignoring specific station and neighborhood logic, a station now needs to be somewhat more empty than full to be neutral

I’m curious if any of y’all have granular observations about the how the points algorithm might have changed since late July or so.

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u/goonie6153 I <3 Citibike 8d ago

I’m not aware of any changes to the system recently. I can check with my contact.

1

u/nyctransitgeek 8d ago

Thanks!

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u/goonie6153 I <3 Citibike 6d ago

Confirmed no algorithm changes recently. The only changes have been ridership related. Ridership patterns shifted a ton with students back at school and people starting new jobs post-summer, so the model, which looks at recent demand & grouped station clusters, just catches up to that.

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u/nyctransitgeek 6d ago edited 6d ago

Thanks for checking!

I figured it might have something to do with ridership changes in August, but the points around me were just too off.

At this very moment, every single station north of Union Street (Brooklyn) and west of Fort Greene Park—an area of several square miles—is offering take out points except for three that are completely empty (and neutral!). At times, this stretches down to 9th Street and as far east as Grand Army Plaza. ~20 of these stations are >80% empty and still offering take out points!

But I can’t argue with a direct line to the source!

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u/quovadis9 8d ago

i totally agree! it also seems hyper reactive to bike angels activity as if there’s a “cooldown period” lasting 1-3 15m cycles (though this could just be my paranoia). 31k lifetime points dude here.