Citi Bike’s solar-powered docking stations don’t always get enough electricity on cloudy days — a glitch that makes returning the bikes infuriating, riders say.
Bike share users — who for weeks have had trouble locking bikes into docks — say the malfunction occurs most on overcast days, when stations are not fully charged.
“It’s a joke — they’re solar-powered so they’re basically dead half the time….It’s worse when it’s cloudy or when the dock is under a tall building,” said Steve Cheney, who spent 15 minutes trying to return a bike to an out-of-commission station at Spring and Mercer streets today.
“The technology is just really bad — they’re new but they don’t have enough energy to last over night.”
He’s not the only one having trouble.
Cyclist David Serrano, 36, had the same problem when the sun wasn’t shining.
“It was after the rain, I noticed I couldn’t get it out of the dock. I called [Citi Bike] and they said, ‘We’re having a lot of problems because of the weather,’” he said.
Cyclist Warren Manos, 52, agreed.
“Recently I’ve been having more issues with it. I think it has something to do with all the rain — or not enough sun,” he said.
“It’s been frustrating,” he said, adding he recently had to try three different docking stations near Columbus Circle on a rainy day before he could return the bike.
Dozens more Citi Bike riders have also taken to social media to air complaints about the docking glitches — most often on cloudy and rainy days — in the past week.
“When it works, Citi Bike is great — but there are some serious docking problems that need to be addressed,” Tweeted cyclist Chris Shiflett.
Some used Citi Bike’s Facebook to complain about glitchy stations — even noting which ones are out of commission in real-time.
“Lafayette/Howard, Lafayette/Petrosino, and Mercer/Spring stations were all down as of 10:30am,” one rider noted on Citi Bike’s Facebook page.
“I needed to dock the bike I had picked up in Midtown, but the docking station would not lock it (no lights, no response)…I am not happy,” he wrote.
Lengthy waits to receive bike keys and poor customer service are also part of the problem, riders say.
A spokesman for the Department of Transportation noted cyclists are simply getting used to a new system.
“The message to individual riders is that if a dock isn’t working, try another dock at the same station or go to another station, which are every couple of blocks,” he said.
He claimed glitches were not weather-related, and added that Citi Bike will not hit riders with overcharge fees if they cannot dock a bike.
no’neill@nypost.com