Forget the yellow taxicab synonymous with New York City: from this summer, there's a new way to whizz around town and see the famous sights – on two wheels. NYC's bike-share scheme, officially called Citi Bike (citibikenyc.com), but predictably dubbed, à la Boris, Bloomberg's Bikes after the city's mayor, has a lot in common with the London system. The 10,000 sturdy blue bikes, to be stationed at 600 pick-up points across Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, are sponsored by Citibank. The bikes are available with one-day ($9.95), seven-day ($25) and annual ($95) passes, and are designed for short commutes, with no extra charge for trips under 30 minutes. After that prices rise for an hour, more steeply for two hours and become somewhat uneconomical beyond that. They may, however, whet your appetite to hire a non-Bloomberg bike for a day and tackle a longer pedal – to the beach, perhaps. We asked five native New York biking enthusiasts to recommend their favourite routes.

Brooklyn Bridge to Central Park, Manhattan

Cycling in Manhattan can be a bit of a challenge because of the crowds, the traffic and the lack of dedicated bike paths. However, on three dedicated Saturdays (4, 11 and 18 August), the Summer Streets project closes roads to everyone but pedestrians and cyclists, and you can cycle from downtown Manhattan to Central Park. And once you've mastered the route traffic-free, you might be confident enough to try it again in traffic another day. You can start on the Manhattan side of Brooklyn Bridge, and cycle through incredibly diverse neighbourhoods – the Lower East Side, Chinatown, Little Italy, Union Square – then on to Park Avenue and through the skyscrapers of Midtown to the park. There are activities to join in along the way, including a climbing wall and a zip wire.

Distance 5.4 miles (one way)
Time 2 hours, including a few stops
Approximate cost of Citi Bike rental $9.95 for 24-hour pass + $25 for two hour rental = $34.95
Ryan Greenawalt, inventor of the Owl 360 rear-view bike camera (theowl360.com)

Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, to Rockaway beach

My favourite route, particularly in the summer months, is the ride from my house in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, to the beach at the Rockaways. The 14-mile route I take isn't all on designated bike lanes, and I zig-zag a little bit, because I like riding along the tree-lined residential streets and admiring the incredible and varied architecture. I start at Grand Army Plaza, and ride though Prospect Park, then, south of the park, I pick up Coney Island Avenue and cycle through Ditmas Park and Kensington, which is where the great mansions are – it feels like wealthy suburbia, not Brooklyn.

I turn on to Bedford Avenue and follow that to Shore Parkway, where I bear left and turn slightly back on myself in order to pick up Flatbush Avenue. That leads to Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge, which is an amazing vertical lift bridge across the channel to the south end of the Rockaways. Cycling across it, you can see the tops of the amusements at Coney Island in the distance. Fort Tilden and Jacob Riis beaches are great spots to spend the afternoon, before cycling back – if you time it right – with the sun setting over Manhattan in front of you.
Distance 11.5 miles (one way)
Time Approximately 75 minutes
Rent a bike from Ninth Street Cycles (ninthstreetcycles.com) for $30 a day
Susan Lindell, bike mechanic, Brooklyn

Queens to Brooklyn

I'm lucky enough to live right on a cycle path in Astoria, Queens, and I can commute the seven miles to work each day in Dumbo (Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass – the waterfront area underneath Manhattan and Brooklyn Bridges), travelling almost the entire way along the waterfront. I pick up the bike path outside my house and head south through Astoria and Long Island City, then cross the Pulaski Bridge over the Newtown Creek into Brooklyn. It's a great spot to stop and admire the incredible view of Manhattan just across the East River as you're directly opposite the Empire State and the Chrysler Buildings.

From there, I head through trendy Williamsburg on the Kent Avenue bike path. A couple of years ago, there was no cycle path here at all; now it's a one-way street for cars and a two-lane path for bikes and is incredibly well-used. I skirt the Hasidic neighbourhood in south Williamsburg, then follow the cycle lane through the Brooklyn Navy Yards to Dumbo. In reasonable weather, it takes me around 45 minutes, but when it gets very hot, it's more like an hour.
Distance 7.7 miles (one way)
Time Around an hour
Approximate cost of Citi Bike hire $9.95 for 24-hour pass + $4 for one-hour rental = $13.95
Helen Ho, development director at Recycle-A-Bicycle (recycleabicycle.org)

Williamsburg to Red Hook

I really began cycling in earnest after I moved to Brooklyn two years ago, as it's the best way to explore the borough, and there are new bike lanes opening all the time. On weekends, I like to ride from Williamsburg to Red Hook: in just 45 minutes, it takes me through many different neighbourhoods and I get to see the different faces of Brooklyn. I set out from my house on North 3rd Street in Williamsburg, and head down Wythe Avenue, through the Hasidic neighbourhood, then through Fort Greene, with its tree-lined streets and coffee shops and, on Saturdays, the Brooklyn Flea, a hugely popular market. I cycle straight through Prospect Park, then turn right and head over the Gowanus Canal, which used to be highly toxic but is now being regenerated, then follow 9th street into Red Hook. I usually end up at Fairway market, in an old warehouse on the pier. It's a great spot for lunch. You can sit by the water looking across to the Statue of Liberty and downtown Manhattan.
Distance 6.8 miles (one way)
Time Around an hour
Approximate cost of bike rental $9.95 for 24-hour pass + $4 for one-hour rental = $13.95
Christy Liu, co-founder of adventuretravel website Wanderfly (wanderfly.com)

Battery Park to Palisades State Park, New Jersey

Any regular New York cyclist probably spends a fair amount of time on the West Side Highway bike path, the greenway cycle path that runs along the west side of Manhattan by the Hudson River. I like to start right at the bottom of the island, at Battery Park, passing through the financial district, the Meatpacking district, the Highline and Chelsea. As well as the river to the left of the path, there are also amazing sights such as The Intrepid, the aircraft carrier that's now a museum, and home to Concorde and a space shuttle. Once you get north of 59th Street, the topography of the island really begins to change, the Hudson Valley opens up and you feel like you're out in nature, not in the city. If you keep heading north to 181st Street, you can ride up on to the George Washington Bridge and cycle over the Hudson River, which is simply spectacular. On the New Jersey side, Palisades State Park is a good spot for a picnic before you head back again. At a leisurely pace, the route should take three to four hours.
Distance 17.7 miles (one way)
Time 2 hours
Rent a bike from Bike and Roll, (bikenewyorkcity.com) from $40 a day
Eben Weiss, bike blogger and author of Bike Snob and The Enlightened Cyclist (bikesnobnyc.com)

Interviews by Jane Mulkerrins