Excitement over Bike Sharing in Portland Oregon

The Portland Oregon, the Bureau of Transportation is studying bike sharing as a possible tool to increase bike use in that green city. This seems ironic, since in New York City, if you want to go to midtown from the Bronx, the only real options are driving and the bus and subway. What kind of world are these "bike sharers" living in? They probably pay very large apartment rents or mortgages, since they must live very close to their jobs in downtown. It really seems like yuppy stuff, since many people cannot ride bikes much after age 40 or 45. Portland, Oregon, ecotopia for the very rich, with bicycles all over the place. Meanwhile, in downtown NYC, the only bikes we see are hardened messengers and bike rickshaws powered by young legs that can take it.