NORWAY — The town will soon be one of only a few communities across the state to offer a free bike share program for the downtown.

The Center for an Ecology-Based Economy at 447 Main St. is restoring a dozen or so bicycles that will be available to anyone free of charge to do local appointments or errands, said Zizi Vlaun of the center.

The goal of the program is to help the community get around more easily on bikes, reduce car traffic, save fossil fuel, reduce the collective carbon footprint of the community and help people get in shape, she said.

Cities such as Boston, New York and Chicago have contracted or are in the process of contracting with companies who provide the bike service on a paid basis.

In Maine, the city of Portland began to develop a regional bike share program last year using initial technical assistance provided through the federal Environmental Protection Agency’s Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities program.

South Portland is also looking at developing a program based on a bike share system launched June 1 at the Portland Transportation Center.

What is different for Norway, Vlaun said, is the local Center for an Ecology-Based Economy is developing the program for a rural community with limited public transportation.

“Our Bike Share program is not like what you would find in the city,” Vlaun said. “This is a grass-roots effort to get people using bikes instead of cars. When someone needs to make a quick trip in town, we’re encouraging them to grab a bike instead of getting in their cars. It’s also a way to give low-income residents, many without cars, a way to get around to get their needs met and business taken care of.”

A few other communities across the state are also developing free bike share programs.

Machias, Kennebunk and Eastport, three of 19 Healthy Maine Streets communities like Norway, are also providing a bike share program, according to information from the Healthy Maine Streets program. Machias is creating several historical bike tour apps.

Vlaun said donations of bikes have come in from the Green Machine Bike Shop on Main Street in Norway, which is also providing the Center for an Ecology-Based Economy a discount on parts and technical assistance. Other donors include the Norway Police Department, Tony Giambro at Paris AutoBarn and Bartow Construction of Otisfield.

The Center for an Ecology-Based Economy was also awarded a $1,000 grant from the New England Grassroots Environment Fund to purchase parts for the bikes. The bikes will have locks with a universal combination, Vlaun said.

Vlaun said the program will allow area residents or visitors to use the bikes for short trips around Norway, Paris and Oxford by signing an agreement and waiver. Users will be offered a map of the service area and best routes. The bikes will be set up with baskets so people can carry groceries or small packages.

Vlaun said the bikes will be in front of the Center for an Ecology-Based Economy until more bike racks are installed in key places around the area. It is hoped large businesses such as Stephens Memorial Hospital, Hannaford and others will consider being part of the project and help fund bike racks in front of their businesses, she said.

“Norway Downtown has set a great precedent for buying the green bike racks on Main Street, and we’d like to grow that effort,” she said.

Vlaun also credited Healthy Oxford Hills for raising awareness in the area with the Active Community Environments.

“We’re hoping to get streets more bike-friendly with safer shoulders and drivers more aware of how to drive safely with bicyclists,” she said. “The Maine Bike Coalition has a lot of information about this that we would like to educate people with.”

The bikes are being repaired at the Center for an Ecology-Based Economy headquarters during skill-share workshops. The next repair workshop is 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 23.

ldixon@sunjournal.com