I did not grow up in a place where taking public transportation or riding a bike was common. In fact, taking the bus or riding a bike was sure to draw every ignorant, hurtful comment you can think of, from “Oh, that person must have a DUI,” to “They must be poor.” It was a place where getting around in any way other than a personal car was looked down on. Unfortunately, in the U.S., it’s not an outlier. Cars are idolized and prioritized in this country, something that’s only reinforced by the fact that our cities and towns have been built to facilitate personal car ownership and make living without one difficult.

For almost a century now, cars have been equated with worth and desirability — they’ve also become increasingly necessary for accessing daily basic needs. Unlike car ownership, which is subsidized by unfettered access to gas and abundant parking, our public transportation systems are expensive. For many, they’re also difficult to access and can leave people feeling vulnerable and without dignity. If you can afford to use it, transit still often falls short when it comes to being able to efficiently access jobs, grocery stores, doctor’s appointments, or even school. Likewise, if you can afford to live in a walkable neighborhood or own and maintain a bicycle, you still might feel unsafe due to a lack of safe and connected infrastructure.

Still, many people are dependent on public transportation, biking, and walking to access their basic needs and that percentage rises if we’re talking about people of color or low-income populations. We also know that one in four U.S. adults experiences transportation insecurity, which has far-reaching effects. People experiencing transportation insecurity might not be able to keep a job, get to school, pick up their children, or bring home groceries. Mobility is a fundamental human right and it’s necessary for a healthy economy. This is why we need Guaranteed Basic Mobility (GBM), also known as Universal Basic Mobility. 

GBM is based on the idea that every person should have the resources they need to meet their basic transportation needs. In practice, it means economic mobility. In this country, the less money you make, the more you spend on transportation, making it difficult to escape poverty. Having access to affordable, reliable public transportation is a way to help reduce poverty and boost our economy. GBM recognizes the need to move freely and participate in society as a basic right, just one part of a staple of services provided by taxpayer dollars and the government. 

My desire to see GBM take hold nationwide is not unique. The concept has been considered for years and was the focus of a panel that I recently moderated for the 2022 Designing Cities Conference, hosted by the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) in Boston last month. It was a privilege to share the stage with two forward-thinking and creative women: Kim Lucas, senior project manager at the City of Pittsburgh, and Seleta Reynolds, chief innovation officer with the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (previously, she was general manager at the Los Angeles Department of Transportation). Both have worked hard to make Guaranteed Basic Mobility a reality in their respective cities. 

In August 2022, Pittsburgh launched its Guaranteed Basic Mobility Research pilot program, which will provide up to 100 low-income residents with six-month access to all of the participating modes of transportation in Move PGH, a mobility-as-a-service collective that includes shared micromobility, car share, and transit. Los Angeles launched its pilot Universal Basic Mobility program in April 2022, offering residents in South L.A. a variety of mobility options for free or at a reduced cost.

For Lucas in Pittsburgh, the pilot is about breaking down the final barrier to mobility: cost. Some 20% of households in the city do not own a car. The pilot is helping people get where they need to go as affordably as possible by providing select residents with free and easy access to all mobility options. These options include but are not limited to the bus, ZipCar, and POGOH bike share. The year-long pilot is focused on the Manchester and Chateau neighborhoods, which have a median income 14% below the city as a whole. The pilot is funded by a $200,000 grant from the Richard King Mellon Foundation, as well as shared micromobility company Spin, which committed an additional $50,000 to the project.

For Reynolds, the Los Angeles pilot is about reducing poverty. South L.A. has a high proportion of households below the poverty line, as well as a large share of residents who rely on public transit (its population is also a majority people of color). Mobility options available to residents include an electric bicycle lending library, an on-demand community electric shuttle bus, an expanded electric vehicle sharing program, and a “mobility wallet” that provides a $150 monthly transportation subsidy to 2,000 residents. Funding for L.A.’s pilot comes from a STEP grant from the State of California Climate Investment Program and the City of Los Angeles, which approved an additional $4 million to enhance the pilot program for a total of $17.8 million. 

Los Angeles and Pittsburgh aren’t the only cities experimenting with UBM concepts, although pilots remain rare. Other examples include a pilot program in East Oakland, California, which launched in November 2020 with 500 prepaid cards that could be used for public transit, bike share, and e-scooters. The final report highlights the program's positive impact and a second pilot is currently underway. Another California program, launched in Bakersfield in 2021, was designed to reduce barriers to job access. The 12-month pilot provided free rides on Spin e-scooters or e-bikes to 100 disadvantaged youth aged 18 to 24. 

Speaking with Lucas and Reynolds, one thing that stood out was their belief that we need to reframe how we think about mobility. Like most things in the U.S., mobility has long been thought of as a way to make money rather than a human right. Transportation and mobility should be thought of and implemented as a service — as a means of investing in people and their ability to achieve success in this country. Only once this mindset takes hold can Guaranteed Basic Mobility truly become a reality. 

I hope that the California pilots, alongside the work being done in Pittsburgh, will help make the case for widespread adoption. I will wait with anticipation to read the final reports from Pittsburgh and L.A.’s research partners — Carnegie Mellon University and the University of California, Los Angeles, respectively — on how these pilots improved people’s economic, social, and health outcomes. While the learnings thus far are promising, we need to achieve a stockpile of data for more cities to follow suit. If more places adopt Guaranteed Basic Mobility, not only will people’s livelihoods improve but our communities will become more robust overall.

Policymakers across the local, state and federal levels are increasingly looking at investments in micromobility projects to connect individuals and communities to jobs and daily needs, reduce congestion and emissions and support main-street economies. Micromobility — from personally owned bikes, e-bikes and scooters to shared systems and a growing number of new technologies that fit in between — benefits all Americans by replacing short car trips and offering first/last mile transit solutions. To ensure this rightfully placed interest meets the highest need with the greatest reach, we established a set of detailed principles and guidance for policymakers on micromobility investments. 

Early in 2022, our respective organizations — PeopleForBikes, NABSA and NUMO — joined forces as members of the CHARGE Coalition, an umbrella group advancing “smart policy to electrify America’s transportation system.” Our goal was to organize the coalition’s working group focused on micromobility around a set of principles that complemented other sectors of the transportation system, including public transit, electric vehicle infrastructure and medium- and heavy-duty vehicles. 

Thanks to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the Inflation Reduction Act and other recent transfusions of infrastructure funding, cities and states have a unique, untackled opportunity to invest in connected and transformative micromobility projects, studies, infrastructure and incentives. The principles cover high-level concepts critical to ensuring success in a wide range of micromobility projects, including electrifying bike and scooter share fleets, connecting bike infrastructure to transit and addressing the growing need for secure storage and charging in urban, residential and commercial areas for electric micromobility. 

The micromobility principles center equitable mobility as a right and an unmet need for a majority of Americans, especially those from low-income communities and historically disinvested communities. The goal of these principles is to ensure the highest level of success for a new era of transportation investments that center people-focused mobility, the replacement of short car trips as the largest source of transportation emissions and a more connected and equitable transportation system. 

Join us for our upcoming webinar, Charging Ahead on Micromobility, on the opportunities for policy and practice in micromobility on September 30, 2022, at 12:30 p.m. ET. 

Moderated by NABSA’s Sam Herr, hear from experts and leaders in the field, including:

Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), founder and co-chair of the Congressional Bike Caucus

Dr. Jennifer Dill, professor and director of the Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University

Caroline Samponaro, vice president, head of micromobility & transit public policy at Lyft

Harriet Tregoning, director of the New Urban Mobility alliance (NUMO)

After breaking a leg skiing, this rider’s e-bike has been instrumental in aiding both her physical therapy and mental well-being. 

There’s a growing body of research on the myriad of health benefits that electric bicycles offer, from improved cardio to helping people keep riding as they age. They can even quicken the recovery time of some injuries, my latest included. 

In early January, I suffered a broken tibia and fibula in my right leg from a nasty fall while skiing. Two months after breaking my leg and undergoing surgery, I’m more comfortable riding my e-bike than walking to get around. 

As I heal, I’m using my e-bike as part of my physical therapy. Biking is a low-impact activity and the small electric boost makes the work of going uphill easier for anyone, especially if you have a Class 2 electric bike with a throttle. My leg muscles, atrophied while I relied on crutches and sat on the couch for six weeks, are slowly charging back up with every ride. I could not be more grateful I brought my e-bike home in 2021.

It’s been less than a month since I’ve put weight on my right leg, and I can already ride my e-bike to physical therapy appointments, for small errands, to see friends and get out to enjoy the spring sunshine. Walking is also getting easier because I’ve been biking, loosening stiff joints and building up muscle.

I’ve lived in Washington, D.C., for nearly eight years, all without a car. I’ve always relied on my bike, shared micromobility, walking and transit to navigate the city. Getting back to that level of independent mobility is priceless. I also recognize I’m incredibly lucky to both own an e-bike and have access to connected and protected bike infrastructure right outside my door, since my safety feels more important than ever knowing that a fall or a crash could further damage my leg and set my recovery back — if not worse. 

Most physical therapy appointments start with a warm up to get your muscles and body moving. Limping in, I’m asked to spend a few minutes on a stationary bicycle before pointing to my helmet to show I’ve already biked there. Therapists are often shocked until I explain I rode an e-bike, and after a few questions about it, we get right to work poking, stretching and strengthening my leg. 

I’m no stranger to PT: I’m a high-energy, low-skill athlete with a dramatic falling habit. I tried playing soccer in an adult recreation league in the fall of 2017 but tore my left ACL in the first game. I was back on Capital Bikeshare within weeks, opting for a slow roll to most destinations instead of walking since it was less strenuous and more efficient. 

In the summer of 2018, I hopped on a mountain bike for the first time and flipped over the handlebars, shattering my left collarbone (only seconds after watching my friend flip and break hers too). Though it took awhile to get back on a bike, I again relied on the comfort and ease of an upright bikeshare bike before hunching over the drop bars of my well-loved 1974 Schwinn Sprint. 

In the aftermath of these injuries, biking did more than provide me with a low-impact physical activity, though that was major for my body’s overall rehabilitation. It completely transformed my mood and my mental well-being, giving me agency over how and when I could move through my city and our natural world. With an e-bike, I’m back in the saddle sooner than previous injuries, cranking the motor up to turbo mode so I can gently work my leg back into action.

My last big bike ride before this most recent injury was my first century ride, 102 miles at El Tour De Tucson, in November. I was regularly biking 15-30 miles several mornings a week and spending weekends on the abundance of bike paths, scenic rides and gravel roads around D.C., Maryland and Virginia. I kept a clear divide between my e-bike and my road bike, even leveraging the difference to help convince skeptics. My e-bike is for utility only, like getting groceries, taking meetings across town or commuting to my grad program. My acoustic bike is for fun and exercise. 

In my recovery though, my e-bike is everything. It’s going to be a while longer before I’m back to my spandex-clad morning workout rides, but I’ll get there sooner thanks to my e-bike. 

I’m now meeting up with friends I didn’t regularly ride with on their commuters and hybrids, spending more time in conversation on our bikes, enjoying good weather and each others’ company. Check out my first joyride since breaking my leg! I plan to keep blurring this line even when my leg is in better shape. 

I considered myself an e-bike evangelist before I broke my leg, advocating for the E-BIKE Act and electric bicycle incentives with PeopleForBikes and in my personal life, talking about them to anyone and everyone who would listen. Now, I can’t imagine where my body and mind would be without my e-bike. 

Applications are currently open for four separate bicycle mechanic educational opportunities, all geared towards increasing gender and racial diversity in the bike industry.

It’s no secret that the outdoor industry and bicycling, in particular, have a diversity problem. It’s a complex, ongoing issue with no simple solution, but multiple companies are stepping up with tangible efforts to facilitate change. Among them is Quality Bicycle Products (QBP), the bike industry’s largest distributor of bicycle parts and accessories. 

A certified B Corp, the Minnesota-based company sees itself as the thread that weaves together the industry at large. As part of its commitment to making bicycling more accessible and inclusive, the company offers a variety of industry scholarships for folks from disinvested communities to sharpen their skills through education and build careers in bicycling. Applications are currently open for four separate bicycle mechanic scholarships — the deadline to apply is April 8, 2022.

Almost a decade ago, QBP launched its first bike mechanic scholarships for women in partnership with the United Bicycle Institute. In 2019, QBP formalized its U of Q education department with the hiring of Aaron Stehly, who was tasked with looking at what the organization was doing well and where it could do better. He saw an opportunity to expand the scholarship programs to include gender diversity of all types, as well as reach BIPOC by creating a new racial diversity cohort. This year marks the first time QBP is offering the latter.

“It is our goal to help our industry partners recruit from a really highly qualified group of individuals and to directly diversify the employment pool,” said Stehly, QBP’s director of education. “We seek to introduce career and networking opportunities to each student — there are lots of great careers in this industry that many might not be aware of.”

In line with that goal, QBP is investing in developing programs and opportunities that focus on building community between industry employers and scholarship recipients post-graduation. “It goes beyond just the training,” said Stehly. “We're looking bigger and wanting to put our actions and values where our words are through measurable engagement with these students after graduation.”

Donations from the Greater Bentonville Chamber of Commerce have also allowed for two new DEI Bike Mechanic Scholarship cohorts, open to any individuals that call Northwest Arkansas (NWA) home. Although any current resident that identifies as a woman, LGBTQ or BIPOC is encouraged to apply, the application specifically calls out Hispanic and Marshallese folks, who make up large ethnic minorities in the region. The NWA cohorts are divided into “Advanced,” for those currently employed in the bike industry with some mechanic experience, and “Beginner,” for those without industry employment and formal bike mechanic experience.

The following four QBP Bike Industry Scholarship Programs are currently accepting applications:

Professional Bike Mechanic Scholarship — Racial Diversity Cohort

Sixteen scholarships will be awarded to BIPOC (Black, indigenous, people of color) individuals who are currently employed at a bicycle retailer, nonprofit shop or who have graduated from a community bicycle internship program and want to advance their careers with in-depth, hands-on bike mechanic training.

This U of Q Institute Professional Bike Service course will take place in Colorado Springs, Colorado, from July 18-29, 2022. Learn more and apply.

Professional Bike Mechanic Scholarship — Gender Diversity Cohort

Sixteen scholarships are available for women, transgender, non-binary, gender non-conforming, two-spirit and agender individuals who are currently employed at a bicycle retailer or nonprofit shop and want to advance their careers with in-depth, hands-on bike mechanic training.

This United Bicycle Institute (UBI) Professional Repair and Shop Operation course will take place in Ashland, Oregon, from August 15-26, 2022. Learn more and apply.

Arkansas DEI Bike Mechanic Scholarship — Beginner

Eight residents of Northwest Arkansas who identify as women, LGBTQ or are BIPOC, Hispanic or Marshallese will be awarded this scholarship, which requires no prior bike industry experience and is designed for those looking for entry-level training. 

This U of Q Institute Bicycle Assembly and Maintenance course will take place in Colorado Springs, Colorado, from August 15-19, 2022. Learn more and apply.

Arkansas DEI Bike Mechanic Scholarship — Advanced

Eight residents of Northwest Arkansas who identify as women, LGBTQ or are BIPOC, Hispanic or Marshallese will be awarded this scholarship, which is designed for those who want to advance their career as a bike mechanic by learning how to confidently execute complex repairs and maintenance.

This U of Q Institute Professional Bicycle Service course will take place in Colorado Springs, Colorado, from August 15-26, 2022. Learn more and apply.

Every scholarship includes the full cost of tuition and lodging during the respective course dates. Travel and the logistics of getting to the school are the responsibility of each student, although a small travel stipend will be given to help with food and other living expenses. Bike share employees or aspiring bike share employees also qualify for these scholarships. For those interested in applying, Stehly encourages taking the time to showcase a dedication to one's community and the ways they’re helping to amplify bicycling in disinvested communities. While not required, references are encouraged.

“These scholarships are an effort to reach beyond our four walls and grow the bike industry,” said Stehly. “If you’re interested and think that you qualify, then apply by April 8.”

QBP Scholarships Aim to Diversify the Bike Industry

BCycle is the first bike share company to participate in Call2Recycle’s landmark, industrywide battery recycling initiative.

When it comes to the electric bike craze, bike share is just as susceptible to the allure of pedal-assist riding. Systems from Charlotte, North Carolina (Joy Rides), to Portland, Oregon (Biketown), adopted all-electric fleets, while others — including Bublr Bikes in Milwaukee and the new Pogoh system in Pittsburgh — recently created hybrid systems with the introduction of electric-assist bikes. Chicago’s Divvy system, among the largest in the country, first added 3,500 e-bikes in 2020 and plans to have some 10,000 by the end of 2022. 

According to the 2020 NABSA State of the Industry report, 44% of cities with bike share systems have fleets that include e-bikes. That percentage is all but guaranteed to grow within the next few years.

If you’ve ever ridden an e-bike, it’ll come as no surprise that bike share systems that go electric consistently bring in more users. After all, electric bikes make bicycling more attractive to people of all abilities and allow folks to bike longer distances with less physical effort. In 2019, when the Madison BCycle fleet in Madison, Wisconsin, went electric, usage more than doubled, and in New York City, electric-assist Citi Bikes see more than twice as many rides per day than their traditional counterparts. Despite their popularity, however, electric bikes pose two issues for bike share systems: they must be charged and they require lithium-ion batteries, complicating the environmental benefits of bicycling.

To solve the charging issue, operators often have to collect e-bikes and take them elsewhere to recharge, although some systems — including Divvy, Pogoh and WeCycle in Aspen and Basalt, Colorado — have gotten more creative, developing solutions for charging bikes on-site at station docks. The issue of lithium-ion batteries is more problematic. While research shows that e-bikes are more likely to replace short car trips (resulting in significant CO2 savings), the social and environmental impact of the batteries remains notable.

Lithium-ion batteries, though smaller than those used to power electric vehicles, are still a necessary component of all e-bikes. Lithium is a metal and the process of mining and extracting it from ore is devastating for our natural ecosystems. There are only a handful of lithium deposits around the world, many of which are located in indigenous communities that bear the brunt of environmental destruction. The International Energy Agency estimates that the demand for lithium will increase almost 90% over the next two decades if countries meet their ambitious vehicle electrification goals, and continuing to mine is simply isn’t a sustainable solution. Recycling lithium-ion batteries is currently our best option. 

In November 2021, PeopleForBikes partnered with Call2Recycle to debut a first-of-its-kind, industrywide electric bicycle battery recycling program. For participating companies, the E-Bike Battery Recycling Program is a safe and reliable way to keep electric bicycle batteries out of landfills. Some 27 bike suppliers and manufacturers have already signed on to support and fully fund the initiative, which began enrolling retail sites in February. 

The voluntary program uses an extended producer responsibility (EPR) model, which essentially puts the onus of recycling batteries on the manufacturer. Once a company enrolls in the program, every battery it sells into the market is tracked on a monthly basis. That number is then assessed with a per battery fee (currently $15) and the bike battery manufacturer is presented with a bill, which once paid helps Call2Recycle fund the full life of its battery recycling operation, including the cost of materials, containers and shipping.

“The biggest cost out of everything by far is the shipping,” said Rob Latham, the e-bike program manager at Call2Recycle, explaining that there are only a couple of places in the U.S. that have the capability to recover 95% of the metals in e-bike batteries, which allows them to be put back into the supply chain as new products.

The program was designed to be customer-facing, so when an e-bike battery reaches its end of life or is damaged, riders are able to take it to a participating retail store, where staff is trained on how to properly handle and package hazardous material before it's safely shipped to one of Call2Recycle’s partner facilities (the company works with one facility on the west coast and one on the east). There are currently 1,127 U.S. retail locations currently participating in the program and more are expected to finish training and come on board in the coming months, including all of REI’s 174 locations nationwide.

Trek Bicycle Corporation, one of the founding members of the E-Bike Battery Recycling Program, owns BCycle, which operates eight bike share systems in the U.S. (and supplies e-bikes and equipment to another 28). By nature of that connection, BCycle is currently the sole shared micromobility participant currently enrolled in the program. Now, when an e-bike battery on any of BCycle’s 3,500 bikes is no longer operable, there’s a sustainable solution on hand.

“At the center of everything we do in bike share is sustainability,” said Tyler Britz, the bike share marketing manager at Trek. “Before and after our bikes are on the ground and being used, we want to make sure that we're creating sustainable habits throughout the entire life cycle of our products and our bikes.”

Since BCycle first launched e-bikes in Madison in 2019, the need to recycle the batteries has been front-of-mind. All lithium-ion batteries have a lifespan and depending on how often a bike is ridden, they’ll last anywhere from two to five years. From the outset, BCycle has communicated to its operators that they should hold on to end-of-life batteries while the company researches a sustainable solution. With the launch of the Call2Recycle program, BCycle operators can now sign up on the Call2Recycle website, take a short video training and request recycling kits for any batteries they have collected.

“The cost of the program is covered by the cost of the e-bikes BCycle supplies,” said Britz. “So it’s built right in, making things even easier.”

For bike share operators that are not affiliated with BCycle, there’s a regularly updated list of participating manufacturers on Call2Recycle’s website. If a bike share system’s equipment is manufactured by one of the participating companies, getting enrolled in the program is as easy as taking the training and sending old batteries in for recycling. For systems whose manufacturers aren’t yet participating in the program, there are still ways to get involved, including lobbying the original manufacturer to join. Latham says interested parties can reach out through the Call2Recycle website to inquire about options for bike share, including a possible pay-as-you-go model.

BCycle’s e-bikes make up just a small fraction of the total number of electric bike share bikes in the country. For some of the industry’s biggest players — the Lyfts and Limes of the world — who are not yet enrolled in the program, Latham sees an opportunity for them to join or to contract their recycling out to Call2Recycle.

“Given their footprint, they probably have a solution in place for their batteries,” said Latham, adding that it wouldn’t prevent Call2Recycle from being able to serve as a partner. “We look forward to welcoming additional rideshares to help broaden the industry-supported program.”

Environmental sustainability is a focus for all operators, who do everything from paying to offset all of their greenhouse gas emissions to using recycled rubber in docking stations to launching creative campaigns that encourage behavioral change. When it comes to keeping batteries out of landfills, though, things can get complicated and expensive. The benefit of an industrywide program is that at scale, everything is made more affordable and the logistics are easier to manage.

“The barriers to entry are low for taking advantage of this program,” said Britz. “We hope that BCycle’s involvement as currently the only micromobility operator sets a standard for other micromobility operators to take advantage.”

An Electric Bicycle Battery Recycling Program Takes Off

The Better Bike Share Partnership (BBSP) awarded $75,040 in grants to 10 projects that will reach and engage traditionally underserved populations through shared micromobility. This is the seventh round of mini-grant funding the national bicycle advocacy organization PeopleForBikes will administer through its partner role with BBSP.

"Better Bike Share mini-grants allow us to support short-term, impactful projects that directly improve access to shared micromobility for lower-income and/or BIPOC communities," said Tangier Barnes-Wright, senior partnership and program manager at PeopleForBikes and BBSP. "We are inspired by the 2022 grantees and look forward to learning from their projects and sharing lessons broadly across the nation."

The following projects were selected by a grants panel to receive funding: 

Increasing Low-Income and Latinx Ridership on Portland’s BIKETOWN | $9,400
Community Cycling Center, Portland, OR

The Community Cycling Center will partner with Andando en Bicicletas y Caminando (ABC) to increase BIKETOWN bike share access through signups and education in low-income communities of color. Over the course of three sessions, 10 neighborhood leaders will be trained on the process of signing up for reduced-fare membership, positioning them as a trusted resource for other community members.

The Go Hub Community Mobility Rituals | $9,000
Equiticity, Chicago, IL

In partnership with Divvy, Superpedestrian and local community-based organizations, Equiticity will host a monthly bike ride and scooter roll. Each ride will have a different theme, socializing participants around the act of mobility and increasing a sense of safety, ownership and autonomy. Depending on the ride, Divvy bikes or Superpedestrian scooters will be provided and participants will learn about each system and its corresponding low-income membership program. 

Golden Rollers: Introduction to BCycle and Micromobility for Older Adults | $5,640
Ghisallo Cycling Initiative, San Antonio, TX

The Golden Rollers program will provide annual bike share memberships, training, guided rides and safety equipment at no cost to 24 seniors and older adults with the aim of increasing ridership. The program will be based out of a senior center adjacent to a BCycle bike share station. This mini-grant will allow interested participants to gain familiarity with the BCycle system and access their fleet of two-wheeled, electric-assist bicycles.

Art, Bikes and Books for All! | $9,500
Arts and Business Council of Greater Nashville, Nashville, TN

The Arts and Business Council of Greater Nashville, the Nashville Public Library and the Music City Dope Pedalers, a majority-BIPOC bike club, will partner to grow the existing Bikes and Books for All program, which makes checking out a BCycle bike as easy as borrowing a book. Funding will help the program expand to more library branches, create bike routes and host a community bike ride with art bikes designed by local artists. 

Blue Bikes Community Liaisons Program | $6,000
Blue Krewe, New Orleans, LA

Blue Bikes will recruit liaisons from the three neighborhoods within its system that rate highest according to the New Orleans’ Bike Equity Index, which helps identify underserved, priority areas. The liaisons will participate in monthly training and be compensated for leading one community outreach activity of their choosing each month from June to November. They will also represent Blue Bikes at neighborhood events, sharing information about the system and gathering feedback on how to improve bike share.

Wheels to Work | $7,000
Houston Bike Share, Houston, TX

Modeled on Indego bike share’s Wheels to Work program in Philadelphia, this mini-grant will support employment and increase health and mobility through bike share. Houston Bike Share will work directly with New Hope Housing’s Harrisburg location to combine services such as resume writing and soft skills classes alongside bike share system training and bike safety. Participants will receive a free BCycle membership and participate in group rides designed to be inclusive.

Building Mobility Justice in Pittsburgh | $9,000
Bike Share Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA

This mini-grant will fund aspects of the POGOH bike share system’s equity initiatives, including cash payment administration, support for its $10/year low-income Mobility Justice Pass and its 2022 Community Day event execution. The Community Day will bring families and the neighborhood together around outdoor activities, food, music and a helmet giveaway, raising awareness about POGOH and the Mobility Justice Pass. 

Equity Memberships | $8,500
Tulsa Bike Share/This Machine, Tulsa, OK

This Machine will partner with local nonprofits, including the Tulsa Housing Authority and two prison alternative programs for female drug offenders, to provide a form of reliable transportation to access essential services. The pilot program will offer reduced-priced memberships to folks working with its partner organizations and anyone with a SNAP or SoonerCare card. The goal is to collect comprehensive data before applying for funding to make the equity membership program permanent.

West Dayton Community Outreach | $6,000
Bike Miami Valley, Dayton, OH

The Dayton Bike Share system is expanding by adding hubs in the city’s priority areas of West and Northwest Dayton. These geographies were historically redlined and are still today majority Black communities. This mini-grant will fund work on the front end of that expansion, gathering input from residents, providing marketing materials and helmets for the demo days and stipends for door-to-door outreach in the community.

Beautification of Downtown BCycle Station | $5,000
Des Moines Street Collective/Des Moines BCycle, Des Moines, IA

In partnership with ArtForce Iowa, the Des Moines Street Collective hopes to bring refugee, first-generation youth to bike share through the beautification of a downtown BCycle station. Marginalized youth will have a hand in the entire creative process, from the initial brainstorm to the final product. Every youth artist will participate in two group rides, receiving bike-riding lessons, an annual BCycle membership and a helmet and bike lock.

The Better Bike Share Partnership is funded by The JPB Foundation as a collaboration between the City of Philadelphia, the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) and the PeopleForBikes Foundation to build equitable and replicable bike share systems. Learn more at BetterBikeShare.org.

Better Bike Share Partnership Awards $75,000 in Grants

Pandemic-era changes to the built environment dramatically shifted the urban bike landscape. But if equity had been centered, would the numbers be higher?

In 2021, Santander Cycles, Transport for London’s bike share system, reported its busiest year to date. According to a recent press release, there were more than 10,900,000 bike hires last year and more than 1 million individual customers, 178,000 of which were new (a 7% increase over 2020 and more than double that of any year prior to 2020). By all accounts, it was a banner year for London bike share, echoing the larger increase in bicycling across the U.K. capital.

During the pandemic, the number of Londoners who bike jumped from 21% in 2019/20 to 27% in 2020/21. Participation also grew, particularly among minority communities and women. Additionally, Transport for London research shows that one in five people who don’t bike are open to starting, which could increase participation rates to more than 40%. In particular, more than half of Black and Asian non-bicyclists (49% and 46% respectively) reported that they were considering starting to bike.

London’s increase in bicycling can be directly attributed to its response to COVID-19, namely the ways in which the city prioritized new, equitable investments in infrastructure. In spring of 2020, the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, released “Streetspace for London,” a detailed plan outlining projects and other initiatives to create more space for people to safely walk, bike, scoot and wheel their way around the city, helping to mitigate the effects of lockdown. The main projects were pretty simple: Build out a network of temporary bike lanes and routes, widen sidewalks and create 70 new Low-Traffic Neighborhoods (LTNs) by restricting vehicle traffic on low-speed side streets.

These changes transformed the city, which has a population of almost 9 million. Will Norman, London’s walking and cycling commissioner, shared that the city saw a 200% increase in bicycling compared to pre-pandemic numbers, touting the 100 kilometers (62 miles) of new bike lanes and LTNs as major reasons for the increased ridership. While both the new lane miles and the LTNs have proved popular, there were questions about the equitable distributions of the LTNs (in most cases, critiques centered around the lack of public outreach and not the creation of the LTN itself). 

A study published in October 2021 found that “LTN implementation has been broadly equitable at the city and micro levels, but the picture is more mixed at the district level, despite districts being encouraged to consider deprivation when planning LTN locations.” What the researchers concluded feels obvious, but is far from a given when it comes to city planning: Continuing to monitor the distribution of infrastructure changes among different demographics will only help planners to improve equity.

A different study credited COVID-era pop-up bike lanes with an 11-48% increase in bicycling trips in cities across Europe. While safe networks of bike infrastructure are crucial to increasing mode shift — especially for women and other underrepresented groups — evaluating their impact is often difficult due to the glacial pace at which most cities tend to operate. The quick roll-out of pop-up bike lanes in European cities presented a unique empirical opportunity to estimate the effect of new bicycling infrastructure. It only makes sense then that an increase in bike lanes, especially protected bike lanes, would also benefit bike share.

Of course, all of these changes mean little if they’re: a) not sustained, and b) confined to certain parts of a city, and thus, certain demographics. In London, efforts were made after the fact to incorporate public outreach into plans and see what can be done to increase accessibility to bicycling. While acting quickly and prioritizing people over cars played a crucial role in getting more folks to bike, more community engagement at the frontend likely would have ensured even larger increases — as well as more persistent and sustained use, which in turn can generate enormous public health benefits that outweigh initial investment costs. 

Transport for London acknowledged the importance of ensuring that people from all backgrounds feel comfortable biking, noting that such inclusion is key to creating healthier, more sustainable communities. Still, while National Health Service (NHS) staff are able to use Santander Cycles free of charge and students receive a 25% discount, no reduced pricing scheme currently exists for low-income residents. Bikes can be rented for £2 a day (about $2.70) or £90 a year ($120) for an unlimited number of 30-minute journeys. 

It’s one thing to acknowledge the importance of engaging diverse riders and another to reduce barriers in order to achieve it. Santander Cycles is currently undergoing an expansion in Southwark Council, with eight new docking stations being instituted over the next year, and is working to introduce around 500 electric bikes into its system by summer. The latter is a good step to reducing some of the barriers that prevent people from riding (namely fitness, age and trip distance) but the e-bikes will likely cost more, an insurmountable barrier for many.

What remains impressive about London is the number of pop-up bike lanes it instituted and the dramatic effect it had on bike share and bicycling in general. Writing about the pop-up bike lane study in Streetsblog, Kea Wilson notes how researchers couldn’t replicate the study in the U.S. because the scale of COVID infrastructure interventions was so much lower and our cities are more auto-centric. She adds, however, that the U.S. is in the unique position to continue to invest in quick build infrastructure while centering equity. We can learn a lot from what the U.K. did and didn’t do.

Adding quick-build infrastructure to underserved neighborhoods might get more low-income and BIPOC individuals to consider biking, but as long as our cities maintain unjust traffic enforcement and bike laws, residents can’t afford bike share or bike maintenance costs and riders aren’t served by network routes, the number of bicyclists will fall short of its full potential. To create mobility systems that serve everyone — and address climate change, air quality and other societal ills — we need to invest in equitable bicycling infrastructure and better bike share systems, ensuring that comprehensive community engagement is centered every step of the way.

Looking for more bike lessons from Europe? These seven cities are role models when it comes to great bicycling and offer tangible learnings for the U.S.

From Colorado to Canberra, e-bike libraries are on the rise and helping break down traditional barriers to riding.

Before I ever rode an electric bicycle, I judged them harshly. As a longtime bicycle commuter, I classified e-bikes as something that wasn’t for me. If there’s a battery involved, does it even qualify as biking? That all changed the moment I rode one for the first time. 

My introduction to electric bicycles was through Boulder, Colorado’s Bcycle bike share, and I was instantly hooked. Although it still required me to pedal, suddenly hills were easier, I could easily offload my heavy laptop bag and I wasn’t breaking a sweat. A month later, I bought a $1,500 e-bike of my own. There’s no bike share station near my home in South Boulder nor at my office in East Boulder, and my new vehicle makes the 12-mile round trip easy, even with 40 pounds of groceries. The e-bike has completely replaced my in-town car use, lowering my carbon footprint and boosting my cardio. 

My experience underlies how e-bikes are transformative, for individuals and the environment, but also a marker of privilege. I had $1,500 in savings that I could spend on something I didn’t need. And, if I wanted to spread out the payments, I have easy access to good credit. For many low-income individuals — those who are less likely to own a car or live close to their places of employment and other essential services — such an extravagant purchase would be out of the question yet all the more vital.

Equitable bike share is one solution and the reason the Better Bike Share Partnership (BBSP) exists. We help promote expansion into historically marginalized neighborhoods through community engagement and we’re advocates of low-income pass options. Despite seven years of effort, however, many bike share systems continue to be built for a certain type of nine-to-five, white-collar commuter, concentrated in downtown city centers and not well integrated with transit. Even for those who do have access to bike share, it may not include electric bikes, which better allow people of all ages and abilities to travel farther distances with heavier loads.

In this context, the growth of e-bike libraries makes sense. Some, such as those run by the Vermont-based nonprofit Local Motion, are indiscriminate in who they cater to. Local Motion lends e-bikes out of its Burlington headquarters and on a roving basis across six other communities in the state, exposing more people to the technology and encouraging personal adoption. Borrowers are able to take home cargo e-bikes and other commuter options for a week at a time to see how it suits their daily needs. Similarly, the Canberra Electric Bike Library in Canberra, Australia — run by the nonprofit SEE-Change and supported by the government — allows residents to try a variety of e-bikes for up to two weeks free of charge. 

Many other e-bike schemes specifically cater to low-income populations or essential workers. Two 2021 BBSP grantees, People For Mobility Justice and Reddy Bikeshare, set up e-bike libraries of their own. The former is a long-term project based in California’s San Fernando Valley that will make 100 pedal-assist e-bikes available to low-income individuals that don’t have easy access to other vehicles. The latter is based in Upstate New York and repurposed donated Uber JUMP bikes into two libraries run by the nonprofits Create a Healthier Niagara Collaborative and the East Side Bike Club. Each library offers around 50 e-bikes free of charge to locals, who only need to sign up online and complete a 20-30 minute orientation. The hope is that by partnering with community organizations and individuals in areas where unemployment rates are high, income levels are low and health outcomes are bleak, the free e-bikes might be a force for good.

A completely different model is being piloted by Colorado agencies at the city and state levels. Launched in fall 2020, the Can Do Colorado eBike Pilot Program used funds from the Colorado Energy Office to supply 13 essential workers in Denver with e-bikes. The success of the program inspired other cities throughout Colorado to do the same, including Pueblo, Durango, Fort Collins and Boulder. As the Mile High City looked to iterate on the pilot, e-bike libraries made a lot of sense.

“We wanted to focus on under-resourced communities that don’t have great mobility options,” said Mike Salisbury, transportation energy lead at Denver’s Office of Climate Action, Sustainability and Resilience. “We want to give people more options to get to the places they need to go in their lives, whether that's work or the store or a doctor's appointment.”

Denver currently has three e-bike libraries throughout the city in the Sun Valley, Globeville and Elyria and Swansea neighborhoods — all historically underserved communities. The libraries, each of which is operated by trusted community-based organizations, are among the first initiatives to be funded by the city’s Climate Protection Fund. The locations include Prodigy Coffeehouse, which does workforce development training, Focus Points, a family resource center and various affordable Denver Housing Authority developments. All of the e-bikes — about 70 total — were sourced from FattE-Bikes, a locally owned and operated e-bike shop.

Although it’s too early to draw any conclusions, Salisbury notes that residents have been consistently checking out the bikes and using them. “People are doing exactly what we were hoping they would do, which is using them to get to a job or appointments,” he said.

Denver’s motivation for the libraries is influenced by both its aggressive climate goals, as well as a focus on equity. While electric vehicles are being positioned as an environmental solution by the Biden Administration, the fact remains that in order to practice transportation justice — whereby more people have more mobility options and certain demographics don’t bear the brunt of car culture’s negative effects — we simply need fewer vehicles on our roads overall. 

“E-bikes can fill that gap between what someone can do on a regular bike and what they can do in a car,” said Salisbury. “There are also so many benefits, especially when it comes to public health — any kind of active transportation is a huge plus but e-bikes also reduce emissions, which helps improve air quality.”

However, one of the main barriers to the widespread adoption of bicycling is a lack of safe infrastructure; many people fear for their safety while riding, especially in under-resourced neighborhoods that tend to have fewer protected bike lanes and disproportionate levels of enforcement. Denver committed to building a 125-mile network by 2024, as well as substantially upping its investment in protected bike lanes.

“We need more of that,” said Salisbury, adding that cities need to ensure people feel comfortable riding and offer more ways to do so. “We need to do both at the same time — provide the infrastructure and different ways to use that infrastructure.”

For other municipalities looking to launch e-bike libraries of their own, costs will range substantially depending on the types of e-bikes stocked as well as other logistical factors, including where the bikes will be stored (Denver is using old shipping containers) and who will run the day-to-day operations. Denver is leading the way when it comes to offering free e-bikes to under-resourced communities but Salisbury hopes others will soon follow suit, especially as more funding opens up for climate resiliency projects.

In Oakland, California, a $1 million e-bike library is in the works using funding from CALSTART. The project, which aims to bring 500 e-bikes to low-income Oaklanders, is just one component of the Oakland Department of Transportation’s Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Action Plan. Crucially, the initiative will contract with local bike shops and employ a comprehensive community engagement strategy. 

While bike libraries aren’t exactly novel, the focus on free e-bikes is. And although none of the e-bike library models are perfect — for example, more could be done to include folks with disabilities — they’re an important first step. Ultimately, our ability to move forward as a species will depend largely on how we facilitate movement in people’s day-to-day lives.

Research out of Colorado State University highlights how comprehensive mode shift could prevent more than 15,000 deaths a year—and not just in crashes.

There’s been a lot of great bike-related research published this year, including studies highlighting the link between bike share use and protected bike lanes, as well as the environmental benefits of bike share and its positive impact on public health. New research adds credence to the positive impact bicycling has on health outcomes, finding that more than 200,000 premature deaths — around 15,000 in the U.S. alone — could be prevented each year if countries support more urban bicycling by 2050.

The study, the first of its kind, modeled what a comprehensive mode shift could look like from a global health perspective using three different scenarios. In the first, things remain unchanged and so do the rates at which people die from car crashes, air pollution or sedentary disease (think cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and obesity). The second scenario, however, modeled the benefits of progressive transportation policies on urban bicycling over the course of 30 years, with 8% of new bike trips replacing cars. The third scenario assumed that 100% of new bike trips replaced car trips by 2050. The modeling allowed researchers to estimate how many lives might be saved by a global shift towards bicycling.

Published in Environmental Health Perspectives, the study compared 17 countries with high levels of urban riding, including Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Russia, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the U.S. Research was led by David Rojas-Rueda, Ph.D., an environmental epidemiologist and professor at Colorado State University, in collaboration with Julen Egiguren and M.J. Nieuwenhuijsen, scientists from the Barcelona Institute of Global Health. Their modeling work is based on policies that have been proven to lead to an increase in biking levels:

Retroﬁtting biking infrastructure onto existing roads to create networks on arterial streets, small residential streets and intercity roads.

Building and expanding bike share systems in large cities.

Reforming laws and enforcement practices to better protect active transportation.

Investing in walking facilities and public transport to oﬀer trips that can be combined with bike trips.

Eliminating policies that support additional motorized vehicle use, such as free parking and fuel subsidies.

Establishing congestion pricing, travel fees and development impact fees to disincentivize driving. 

“This study should be seen as a call to implement policies that support sustainable mobility and a healthy urban design,” said Rojas-Rueda. “Current policies will impact our future and the health of future generations.”

Even in the scenario where just 8% of new biking trips replaced car trips by 2050, the researchers found that 8,589 lives could be saved globally, with 1,227 in the U.S. Not only does that exceed the number of bicyclists that are currently killed every year (697 in 2020) but 8% is a conservative estimate if every country invested in the policies outlined above. The true number likely falls somewhere closer to the 100% estimate, which researchers found resulted in 205,424 premature deaths being prevented annually around the world.

As in Rojas-Rueda’s past research, this study supports the fact the benefits of bicycling far outweigh the risks of riding through city pollution, even in countries with poorer air quality, such as China and India. His body of research also points to a larger issue in the way we typically discuss the future of transportation, often focusing on the need to reduce emissions but not acknowledging that we need to also reduce bad health incomes. This study showcases how progressive bike policies can do both. 

What the research doesn’t touch on are all of the additional benefits that would accompany a world with less driving, including fewer collisions between motorists. Speaking with Streetsblog’s Kea Wilson, Rojas-Rueda notes how bikeable communities tend to be more livable, with more green space, affordable housing, grocery stores and other essential services, as well as lower levels of air and noise pollution. While somewhat less quantifiable, noise and other urban detritus can lead to anxiety, stress and anger, none of which is good for your health. The mental and emotional benefits of daily exercise are also well-documented.

The obvious question then is why aren’t countries everywhere committed to the policies we know lead to a better climate, public health outcomes, and quality of life? In the U.S., the Build Back Better Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act are a step in the right direction but they’re not enough to fundamentally reimagine how we get around. And that’s a shame — as the research shows, there are lives at stake.

Our current environmental predicament demands unconventional ideas and bold action across the board.

Imagine if instead of companies purchasing carbon offsets to plant trees, they instead offset their emissions by purchasing e-bikes for delivery workers? 

How about if we took money that was earmarked for highway expansions and instead built safer, protected infrastructure and paid folks to ride their bikes?

What if for every car taken off the road and scrapped, all Americans received transit and bike share passes or a heavily subsidized e-bike? 

At least in regards to the last point, things are looking up.

Last month, Vancouver announced a partnership between its transit authority, TransitLink, and the not-for-profit SCRAP-IT. For every fossil-fuel car scrapped, residents are now eligible for a public transit pass worth about $800 CAD. For some 25 years, SCRAP-IT has been working in the provinces of British Columbia and Alberta to encourage drivers to give up their cars in exchange for transit passes, electric vehicle subsidies, carshare credits, e-bikes and cash rebates. 

The organization is also unique in the sense that once the cars are in their possession, they’re truly scrapped (dismantled and shredded), rather than recycled for parts, which only keeps fuel-reliant vehicles on the road. Currently, SCRAP-IT also offers an 11-month EcoPass for the Victoria Regional Transit System, as well as large rebates for new and used electric vehicles, both in conjunction with the government-sponsored Clean BC Go Electric Program. 

While the authority is hopeful the new program will help the 2.4-million-person metropolis meet its climate goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, more could be done to encourage change. For example, the passes are limited to a year and don’t include bike share, as Vancouver’s micromobility system isn’t yet integrated with transit. This is an oversight for a city that’s committed to building out its bike network and keen on solving first and last-mile connections for suburban commuters.

In 2019, California’s Clean Cars 4 All program — which, like the new Canadian programs, offers incentives for low-income residents to trade in older, more polluting vehicles — was amended to include e-bikes and bike share memberships. Although the program isn’t up and rolling throughout the state, the Bay Area has begun accepting applications for qualifying residents. Applicants that turn in a car that’s at least 15 years old receive a $7,500 PEX Visa that can be put towards one or more e-bikes, plus necessary bike accessories, with any remainder used for transit and bike share passes.

While other California regions are working on incorporating e-bikes into their own programs, more funding is needed to keep up with demand. At the federal level, no such benefit exists, although if passed, the E-BIKE Act and the Bicycle Commuter Act would be an enthusiastic step in the right direction. On November 19, the U.S. House of Representatives approved the Build Back Better (BBB) Act, which includes the latest version of the E-BIKE Act, or a 30% refundable tax credit, up to $900, for qualifying new electric bicycles that cost less than $4,000. It also includes a bicycle commuter benefit, allowing commuters to receive up to $81/month as a pre-tax benefit for biking to work that would also cover costs associated with bike share.

The Build Back Better Act has yet to move through reconciliation, however, and even if it makes it to the other side unscathed, we still need drastic action to curb climate change and facilitate mass mode shift. At a recent State of the Industry NABSA panel, Lina Fedirko, transportation program manager at ClimateWorks, spoke for many when she noted the lack of creativity and action government authorities have shown when it comes to facilitating mode shift. “We have to make driving expensive and really inconvenient if we want to speed up the curb,” said Fedirko.

In the shared micromobility space, we’re encouraged by the recent growth of e-bike libraries amongst Better Bike Share Partnership grantees in California and New York, as well as by other government agencies and nonprofits around the world, from Canberra, Australia, to Vermont. Throughout Colorado, programs likewise make e-bikes available free of charge through bike share, libraries housed at community organizations and affordable housing complexes and through gifts for select essential workers. 

As much as we need new programming, shared micromobility systems everywhere still need to continue working to expand bike share equitably, prioritize community engagement, subsidize low-income programs and create transit integration. When it comes to sustainability initiatives, more is always better.

The Argument for Bikes-for-Clunkers Programs

These six U.S. cities are top of class when it comes to their bike networks, infrastructure and political willpower.

At PeopleForBikes, we put a lot of emphasis on a city’s bike network and its residents’ ability to safely bike to the things they need, such as transit connections, jobs, schools, grocery stores and hospitals, as well as the things they like, such as recreational amenities like parks, trails or major shopping centers. We also account for a community’s perception of its local bike scene — every year, we conduct an online survey to hear from people that live, work and play in the cities we’re rating. 

Based on a combination of their network and community scores, all of the places on this list ranked among the top 10 cities in the U.S. Although some of these scores might seem low, cities with scores of 50 and up demonstrate higher ridership, improved safety and greater access than their peers. We spoke to experts in each location to better understand what it takes to build better bicycling communities on a large scale. 

San Francisco’s bike culture is long-established and draws from a 30-plus year history of Critical Mass, a form of direct action where people meet at a certain location and time in order to amplify bicycling via a large group ride.  

“The culture in San Francisco is very supportive of change and you have various organizations pushing for improvements,” said Mike Sallabarry, senior transportation engineer with the city. “It’s not just about on-street facilities, it’s about the different programs and events — all those things add up.”

From big events like Bike to Work Day to smaller workshops and educational gatherings, there are plenty of opportunities for folks looking to build community around bikes in the Bay Area. Even before the pandemic hit, San Francisco had a vibrant Sunday Streets program, a nod to more livable, car-free neighborhoods. Since the city is relatively small — roughly 47 square miles — many residents naturally see driving as unnecessary and unsustainable.

“San Francisco gets a reputation for being a hilly city, which of course it is, but so much of our network bypasses those steep hills,” said Matt Lasky, a project manager at San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA). “Recently, with e-bikes, it’s become even more manageable and accessible.”

San Francisco’s commitment to building out additional bicycle infrastructure has also helped, as has the pace at which it's doing so. In 2019, San Francisco Mayor London Breed pledged to build 20 miles of new protected bike lanes over the course of two years, doubling down on the city’s Vision Zero plan by focusing on high injury zones. This May, Mayor Breed announced that the city had exceeded that goal, laying out additional plans for more and better bike parking, as well as safer and slower streets. 

“Our network build-out has accelerated significantly in recent years, primarily due to our quick build program,” said Sallabarry, noting that the process involves using low-cost materials to focus on safety improvements. Adds Lasky, “The program allows us to evaluate what’s working and then iterate on it.”

San Francisco now boasts an extensive, connected network of 450-plus miles of bike lanes, roughly 40 miles of which are protected. The city hopes to release a map of the network that shows the existing bikeways and where gaps exist, allowing for the prioritization of connectivity going forward.

Since all of New York City's five boroughs could be considered a city in and of itself, our City Rating program scores each borough individually. Of the five, four ranked in the top 10 for big cities with Brooklyn scoring highest (62), followed by Manhattan (55), Queens (54) and the Bronx (44). Although automobile ownership in New York City is lower than the national average (about 45% versus around 90%), it’s not surprising that the one borough lagging behind when it comes to bicycling, Staten Island, also has the highest rates of car ownership (83%).

New York City also boasts the highest number of transit users in the country and in many areas, is densely populated. In Manhattan, which only spans about 22 square miles, there’s the added benefit of everything being relatively close together. When it comes to bike infrastructure, however, what really sets the city apart is its commitment to careful planning combined with rapid implementation. Over the last six years, the city built more than 50 miles of bike lanes each year. Even more impressive, it averaged more than 20 miles of protected lanes per year.

“I think the most important thing you can do [for bicycling] is to build more bike infrastructure,” said Ted Wright, director of the bicycle and greenway program at the NYC Department of Transportation. “You can’t just do protected bike lanes, you can’t only do capital projects — you have to deal with what’s out there right now, listen to where people are riding, use your planners to think about where people could be riding, and go out and build stuff.” 

New York City’s aggressiveness when it comes to construction has paid off, with the number of bicyclists in the city jumping roughly 8% per year since the ‘80s. In particular, the city prioritized projects that have immediate benefits, such as bike lanes across bridges or greenways, what Wright refers to as “beautiful highways for bikes.” The city relies on both data and listening to its stakeholders — accounting for all users and modes is especially crucial when space is at a premium. By improving on projects that weren’t quite right, New York City has managed to build trust and success over time.

Despite having a reputation for rain, the climate in Seattle is relatively temperate. When it does rain, it tends to be more of a constant drizzle rather than a downpour and the city rarely gets snow or intense heat. Add in the fact that Seattle is known as an outdoorsy place — it’s the birthplace of REI, after all — and you get a populace that’s already primed for biking.

“We also have a great advocacy community that has a good relationship with the city,” said Serena Lehman, senior transportation planner with the city. “They push the city to be bolder and prioritize funding for bike projects.”

Even internally, Lehman notes that in the last 15 years, bike champions have become ubiquitous, helping to connect bicycling to transit, advocate for connections from certain neighborhoods or allocate funds for underserved communities. Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan has also made a big commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, opening up substantial funding for bikes and allowing for the completion of critical infrastructure segments that connect Seattle’s larger network.

“We prioritize our unbuilt segments based on several factors,” said Lehman. “The top factors being safety, then equity and finally connectivity, ridership and livability.”

In 2014, Seattle adopted an ambitious bicycle master plan, prioritizing 226 new citywide network miles to be completed by 2030. Today, the city has completed 33 miles and plans to have another 55 done by 2024. In order to make it easier for new people to ride and commute, Seattle prioritized building key bicycle connections to transit, emphasizing first and last mile connections.

Portland has a reputation for being a bikeable city, something that’s only bolstered by events like Sunday Parkways, where streets are closed for folks to “discover active transportation” and the World Naked Bike Ride, meant to highlight the vulnerability of bicyclists. When new folks move to Portland or relocate in town, the city’s SmartTrips program delivers tailored emails and materials showcasing various active transportation options for their new residence. Unsurprisingly, Portland has the highest percentage of bike commuters for any large U.S. city.

“There’s a long history of advocacy at the political level that stretches back decades, as well as advocacy at the community level,” said John Brady, communications director at the Portland Bureau of Transportation. “There's a tradition of biking in Portland that has flowed both on the policy side of things and also on the culture side of things.”

Portland continues to build infrastructure at an impressive clip, emphasizing network connections between neighborhoods through its Missing Links program. As a bridge town with major freeways that bisect its core, the city has begun to build north-west crossings over interstates and bicycle-pedestrian bridges across the Willamette River. In order to bring in new bikers, the city also focused on expanding greenways and building more infrastructure in East Portland, where more historically marginalized communities reside.

“As a city, we’ve begun assessing everything we do through the lens of racial justice, and biking isn't immune from that,” said Brady, noting that PBOT has a full-time equity and inclusion manager and that they’ve also prioritized the expansion of their fully electric bike share system. “There’s safety in the sense of not being hit by a car while riding, but there’s also personal safety from bigotry and violence. We can build a really great bicycle facility but if Black or Latino Portlanders don’t feel safe taking advantage of it, then we’re not completely doing our job.”

Every city on this list has a bike share program but, when it comes to successful community outreach, none quite compare to Philadelphia's Indego system. The city of Philadelphia is a founding member of the Better Bike Share Partnership and from its inception, Indego has maintained strong equity and educational components, working to bring biking to low-income and historically marginalized communities.

“In our bike network development, we've been able to learn from Indego on how to closely work with neighborhoods,” said Kelley Yemen, Philadelphia’s director of complete streets. “Maybe what’s needed isn’t a bike lane but rather street calming on an adjacent street — we have those conversations and really work to meet people where they’re at as we expand.”

Philadelphia is also working to build out a high-quality, safe and connected network, which it hopes will not only bring in new riders but also keep them riding. The city has consistently seen an increase in bicycling year over year and to keep its numbers growing, Philadelphia is in the process of converting to LED lighting citywide and making all-season bicycling more accessible through winter snow clearing efforts.

“We’re not the richest city but we try to leverage every investment we have to make Complete Streets,” said Yemen, noting that Philadelphia is opportunistic when it comes to development. “When PennDOT is reconstructing a bridge or a street is getting repaved, we’re filling in gaps and making bike network connections.”

While a score of 45 leaves a lot of room for improvement, we’re including Detroit in our list based on its progress. The city built its first protected bike lane in 2017 and by the end of this year, will have added another 43 miles of protected bike lanes. That dramatic increase in quality infrastructure has been bolstered by Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, who loves two-way protected bike lanes, as well as the transfer of key employees from the Planning and Development Department to the Department of Public Works.

“We weren’t making a lot of headway before,” said Erika Linenfelser, an urban planner with the city who moved departments with her boss, Deputy Director of Complete Streets Caitlin Marcon. “The Department of Public Works is the one that installs and maintains the bike lanes — for it to now have a Complete Streets focus has been a fundamental shift.”

Detroit is also relatively flat and blessed with incredibly wide streets, a vestige from the time when it earned the nickname Motor City. In the decades since then, Detroit has lost most of its car manufacturing business and its population, declaring bankruptcy in 2013. The city, which was originally built to accommodate 2 million people, now has a population of under 700,000, leaving those big streets with very little traffic. 

“We don’t have a lot of money but it's also fairly easy for us to go in and build protected bike lanes,” said Linenfelser. “We don't have to eliminate street parking, as we can literally just take out a lane that isn’t being used.”

There’s a general consensus among Detroit residents that safer streets are needed and Linenfelser’s team has been emphasizing the fact that more bicycle lanes and lower speed limits benefit pedestrians and drivers alike. Black and Latino residents make up almost 85% of the city and there has been a valid concern, often voiced by City Council members, that bike lanes “aren’t for them” or that they might lead to gentrification. In order to promote bicycling as an activity for everyone, the city upped its educational outreach, diversified its marketing, utilized social media more and partnered with community organizations.

Currently, Detroit is considering how it might grow its network as part of a larger Transportation Master Plan. Since the money isn’t available for a citywide network of protected bike lanes, slow streets with wayfinding signage will likely play an important role when it comes to filling in network gaps and making bicycling viable for less central neighborhoods.

How does your city rank? Check out our 2021 City Ratings and learn how to improve your score.

We’re proud to announce our Living Lab winners, all of which will create replicable programs for improving shared micromobility in low-income communities.

In 2014, the Better Bike Share Partnership (BBSP) formed with a mission: identify barriers to bike share and develop strategies to address them. By partnering with Philadelphia and its Indego bike share system—using the city as a “Living Lab,” or a testing ground for innovative solutions—the BBSP was able to identify replicable best practices that would make any micromobility system more equitable. This year, the partnership is expanding its Living Lab work to include four more cities alongside Philadelphia, each with a specific target area and goal for making bike share better.

The BBSP invited proposals from partnerships of cities, bike share operators and community-based organizations looking to pilot, expand, replicate or scale strategies and tactics related to a specific issue and historically-marginalized population. Projects could not include the funding of new bike share stations or related equipment, on-street infrastructure projects, general operating costs or anything related to a micromobility system that didn’t yet exist. Only applications from U.S.-based, nonprofit organizations or city agencies were considered. In the end, the BBSP received 16 applications from cities large and small across the country. 

“Being a Living Lab means taking a deep dive into addressing the obstacles that affect access to and use of shared micromobility systems,” said Tangier Barnes Wright, partnership and program manager at the PeopleForBikes Foundation, a founding partner of the BBSP. “At the end of two and a half years, the Living Labs communities will share unique and replicable approaches to achieving equity in shared micromobility that can be utilized nationwide.”

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