As she tells it, director and producer Jennifer Boyd fell into the transportation world. In 2018, she released “3 Seconds Behind the Wheel,” a documentary that follows the lives of eight drivers, monitoring their behavior for distracted driving. For her next film, Boyd thought it would be an obvious transition to move from distracted driving to figuring out why more than half of automobile deaths happen outside the car.

“Within about three seconds of doing real research on the topic, I realized that distraction had nothing to do with why pedestrians and cyclists were dying,” says Boyd. “It has everything to do with street design and the sizes of automobiles and speed and all of these things that many people don’t know about.”

Hoping to inspire others, Boyd decided to focus the film on activists leading the burgeoning movement for more democratic streets around the world. She began reaching out to advocacy organizations in the know and connecting with people fighting for pedestrians and bicyclists from New York City to Copenhagen. The activists she met make up the characters in her new documentary, “The Street Project,” which was released in the U.S. on August 25 and is currently available to watch on Amazon, PBS, and other platforms. 

Digging deep into the root causes of traffic violence — which affects low-income and minority communities at disproportionate rates — Boyd and her team engaged a diverse array of experts, including street historian Peter Norton, city planner Jeff Speck, and urban design expert Mikael Colville-Andersen. Their testimonials are interwoven with the story of folks like Dulcie Canton, who parlayed her experience of getting hit while bicycling into working for Transportation Alternatives, and Stacey Champion, a single mom that responded to inaction from the Phoenix City Council by going door-to-door with the hope of galvanizing others.

The film took four years to complete, largely due to the pandemic and the ways COVID-19 continued to shift the narrative. “The Street Project” shows viewers what’s wrong with American streets but also shows what’s possible in scenes from Copenhagen — which wasn’t always the bike Utopia we make it out to be — as well as U.S. cities where the pandemic ensured space was given back to pedestrians and bicyclists. 

“I realized how streets touch so much of our daily lives and our quality of life and our connection to other people,” says Boyd, noting that for many viewers, the film helps spark similar revelations. “I hear this comment all the time from folks: ‘I didn't know this was an issue I needed to care about.’ When those people come and see the film, it really opens up their eyes in a different way to this issue.”

Boyd is hopeful that longtime advocates and community leaders will be able to use the film as a tool to recruit more people to fight for safer streets. As a creative, extensively researched piece with compelling visuals, the film has the power to convey what an article or public meeting can’t, galvanizing support and helping to enact change. While public showings need to be licensed, organizations can charge for tickets as a fundraising event. Boyd also suggests organizations also use film clips, which can be licensed and shown as part of a community conversation around things like equity or safe street design. 

“Hosting a screening event can be a completely different experience than a meeting about the next action steps for the city council to take,” says Boyd. “The latter presumes that you're going to need to have an understanding of the topic to even show up, whereas a film is more inclusive.”

The main takeaway of “The Street Project” is the need for more and better bike infrastructure — how cities get there is dependent on government officials, advocates, and everyday citizens. We need widespread education about what works (namely, protected bike lanes and not just painted bike lanes and sharrows), how bike lanes can positively affect businesses, why reducing speed limits is crucial to creating safer streets, and how parking mandates do us all a disservice. With U.S. traffic fatalities at their highest levels in 20 years, the film’s timing feels fortuitous.

“With the pandemic, people realized overnight that their streets could change — so I’m hopeful,” says Boyd, adding that more and more people seem to understand how the way we’ve inequitably designed our streets has negatively affected certain communities on the edge, and as a result, all of us. “People are starting to see that there’s a better way of life.”

Interested in hosting a showing of the “The Street Project”? Find more information here.

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.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, states and municipalities nationwide are recognizing the benefits of electric bicycles more than ever. Electric bicycles can help build sustainable communities that empower their citizens and better prepare them for disaster recovery. Electric bicycles produce low greenhouse gas emissions, are cheaper to own and maintain than a car and allow for individuals to commute to work safely and comfortably without worrying about the potential health risks of public transportation mid-pandemic.

Electric bicycle incentive programs are being seen as a key strategy to get bikes in the hands of those who need them the most — essential workers and low-income populations — and support communities across the U.S. as we work to recover from the effects of COVID-19 on our society and economy.

Colorado’s Can Do Community Challenge tested this strategy in the fall of 2020 by launching an electric bicycle pilot program in partnership with Bicycle Colorado, Northeast Transportation Connections, SloHi Bike Company, Monica Fitzgerald (Masters of Public Health researcher at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus) and The National Renewable Energy Lab. 13 low-income and essential workers in the Denver area were provided with free electric bicycles and accessories to demonstrate how electric bicycles are a safe, healthy and convenient way to make essential trips around town. 

The success of the program led to an upcoming statewide pilot in which the Colorado Energy Office will award $500,000 in grants to programs that increase access to electric bicycles for essential workers and low-income populations. 

Passed in 2019, California’s Clean Cars For All program follows a similar mission, allowing for low-income and disadvantaged households located in the Bay Area Air Quality Management District to trade in their used car for a $7,500 mobility voucher. This voucher can be used for the purchase of an electric bicycle, public transit or car-sharing program. A handful of other air quality management districts throughout California are looking to duplicate this program in their communities.

PeopleForBikes believes that electric bicycles are an important and necessary tool to support essential workers and low-income populations as communities nationwide work to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Incentive programs geared toward supporting these individuals will help bridge the economic barrier to owning an electric bicycle and allow communities to more readily benefit from their use.

Interested in more information regarding electric bicycle purchase incentive programs? Contact PeopleForBikes’ Regulatory and Policy Analyst Ashley Seaward at ashley@peopleforbikes.org.

Electric Bicycles as a Tool for Essential Workers and Low-Income Populations

In case you missed them, here are 12 of our most important stories from last year.

2021 was a big year for bikes, both in terms of business — NPD Group reported the year-to-date market for bicycles was up 69% over 2019 — as well as from a cultural perspective, with people everywhere beginning to recognize the power of the bicycle to help reach climate and equity goals. At the federal level, we secured major new funding for bike infrastructure (a 70% increase for paths and trails), plus, Congress authorized a program to build connected bike networks and create Complete Streets standards. Electric bikes are an official part of the Build Back Better package and are increasingly prevalent on streets across the U.S. 

By all accounts, it’s an exciting time for our industry. Building on that excitement, there are a handful of stories we published last year that we’d be remiss for not sharing again. Give them a read and let’s carry this incredible momentum around bicycling into 2022.

These four U.S. cities, all with populations under 50,000, received top scores in our 2021 City Ratings. While completely different in terms of geography, culture and approach, they're all doing something right when it comes to bicycling.

2. “Where America Fails, So Have We in Bicycling.”

This candid conversation with Charles T. Brown discusses the findings of a groundbreaking report on U.S. barriers to biking — and what we can do to create safer, more equitable and inclusive communities. 

3. Austin Will Be America's Next Great Biking City

Over the last two years, the Texas capital accelerated the buildout of its all ages abilities bike network, completing more than 100 new miles with no signs of slowing down. It complements our interview with Austin Mayor Steve Adler.

4. What the Growth of Black Peloton Can Teach Bicycling

The stationary bike and exercise company offers potent lessons when it comes to fostering safety, comfort and community for BIPOC riders.

Through the personal bicycle history of Roshun Austin, this piece highlights the physical, cultural and societal barriers that exist for women in the U.S. in general — and that are especially acute for women of color.

From 2020 to 2021, the Minnesota capital’s City Ratings score increased significantly. There are two major factors that led to St. Paul’s score bump: a series of infrastructure improvements and the citywide lowering of its default speed limits.

7. Meet the Rider Improving Access for Disabled Mountain Bikers

If a rider with paraplegia can’t navigate your network, is it truly world-class? Jeremy McGhee is on a mission to ride and document every mountain bike trail in Northwest Arkansas, opening up the landscape for those who can’t ride a traditional bike.

8. The ‘Bike Boom’ Isn’t Just for Adults

The future of kids’ bicycling appeared dire until the pandemic hit. Now, a new generation of bicyclists is emerging, thanks largely to the work of youth bicycling organizations around the country.

A study published in October 2021 shows that areas with less bike infrastructure experience disproportionate ticketing, compounding the effects of racially biased policing and transportation policies.

10. Five Strategies Every Bike Advocate Needs

Want to advance bicycling locally? To win over diverse groups and achieve a bike-forward agenda, we need to shift the conversation. It’s time to reconsider how we apply our messaging around bicycling and bike infrastructure.

11. How Bicycling Changed During A Pandemic

Considering COVID-19 is as prevalent as ever, this piece — based on two studies launched by PeopleForBikes’ at the end of 2020 — hasn’t lost much relevance. Especially the part that highlights the diversity of new riders and a need across the industry to welcome them in.

12. The Unintended Consequences of Bike Laws

Many bicycle laws — such as those that require people to wear helmets, use bike lights or obtain a bike license — seem like a great idea. In reality, these laws are often virtually unknown and enforced at the detriment of BIPOC citizens and those experiencing homelessness.

There were a lot of reasons people got on their bikes this year. No matter what reason you had for experiencing life on two wheels, we’re here to help keep you riding through 2020 and for years to come. We’ve collected a few tips to assist you in staying safe, staying seen and staying pedaling, no matter what kind of biking you do.

Hopefully you’ve been wearing one this whole time, but if you haven’t, wearing a helmet is the best investment you can make to keep yourself safe on two wheels. Even if you’re just riding around the block, helmet up to make sure you can keep riding for years to come. 

With fall bringing shorter days and darker nights, staying seen on the road and on the trail is the next most important thing for staying safe on your bike after buckling up your helmet. A basic set of front and rear lights is the easiest way to make yourself more visible while you ride. A white light in front and red light in back also helps other road and trail users know which direction you’re going. If you’re also looking to light up the road ahead of you, make sure to do some research and invest in the proper kind of light. Some bike lights are only for being seen by others and will not do too much to illuminate your path.

Light-colored and reflective clothing is another great way to stay seen while on your bike. Bright colors are an easy way to increase visibility at all times of day. Many companies also sell biking-specific clothing with built-in reflective fabric for those early morning and late night rides. Not only are they usually made of performance fabrics that keep you more comfortable during your ride, the reflective material increases your visibility, keeping you safe, comfortable and stylish. 

Depending on how often you got on your bike this summer, it’s probably time to stop by your local bike shop for a fall tune up. While many shops are still fully booked out for repairs, if there’s a week or two stretch when you know you can part with your bike, dropping it off to make sure everything is running smoothly will keep you riding strong well into winter. Routine maintenance is key to prolonging the life of your bike and ensuring you get the best riding experience every time you head out on two wheels.

Every time you get on your bike should be a fun experience, but that doesn’t mean you only have to bike for fun. Investing in some accessories to increase the utility of your bike is a great way to keep riding. By adding a front or rear rack, a basket or other storage options, you can trade short car trips for bike trips to the grocery store or other errands around town and still have a safe, convenient way to get everything home. Depending on the age and wear of your tires, buying some new rubber is also a great upgrade heading into months that can have less than ideal weather. Installing a wider or knobbier tire can help keep you riding through rain, mud, snow or whatever else fall and winter can throw at you.

Looking for more inspiration? We've got you covered.

Carry Your Summer Biking Habit into Fall  

Stay Safe, Stay Seen, Stay Pedaling: Helpful Tips to Keep Riding

Fort Collins, a recipient of our 2020 COVID-19 Mobility Response Grant, used the funding to beef up its existing bike network, as well as roll out an extensive marketing campaign.

Even in cities that boast substantial bike networks, there’s always more work to be done — especially during the pandemic, with Americans biking at unprecedented levels. Fort Collins, a university town in northern Colorado with a population of roughly 170,000, is an example of how smart spending can improve biking in a city that already invested in the necessary infrastructure.

In June 2020, the PeopleForBikes Foundation offered a cash grant of up to $20,000 to support the local implementation of programs designed to increase biking and walking as part of a community’s response to COVID-19. The hope was that these short-term pandemic efforts would lead to more permanent changes in local transportation networks. Tucson, Arizona and Fort Collins were both chosen to receive grants, proposing vastly different projects.

“We decided pretty early on that closing streets the way we were seeing in Denver and with other Slow Streets concepts was not going to fly in Fort Collins,” said Nick Heimann, an active modes specialist for the City of Fort Collins. “Instead, we looked at the robust system that we were already encouraging people to use for walking, bicycling and scooting on a regular basis, and decided to augment what was already there.”

Fort Collins opted to use grant funds to support the installation of approximately 126 permanent bicycle wayfinding signs along low-stress bikeways, as well as temporary wayfinding in the form of pavement stencils to fill in gaps across the city’s bike network. The bulk of Fort Collins’ efforts, however, focused on their Shift Your Ride campaign, a broader initiative encouraging residents to forgo single occupancy vehicle rides.

Heimann, who has a graduate degree in public health, was uniquely positioned to understand the role transportation could play in a pandemic. “I saw the pandemic as an explicit opportunity to focus on public health and its integration into our programs,” said Heimann. 

Since Fort Collins already had a robust trail system and a pervasive low-stress bike network, building more infrastructure didn’t necessarily make the most sense. According to Heimann, the city’s response to COVID-19 was less about providing the space for bicycling as it was encouraging people to get out and engage in physical activity in a safe way.

Community members used water-based paint to augment Fort Collins’ existing low-stress bike network.

In order to make its existing low-stress network more cohesive, Fort Collins focused on installing 126 permanent bicycle wayfinding signs along five destination-serving, citywide routes, as well as temporary wayfinding in the form of pavement stencils. The former helped build awareness for the city’s most popular routes at a time when more people were out biking, while the latter was a cost-effective way to fill in gaps in the city’s network and help users navigate less obvious connections.

“Before, our signs were definitely spaced too far apart for it to really seem like a truly cohesive network,” said Heimann. “The stencils were a low-cost, innovative solution that allowed us to pilot something with the intention of possibly scaling it up in the future.” 

Not only did the low price tag of water-based paint allow the city to gauge the public response before committing to permanent changes, but the bright neon green color helped generate awareness for the existing network among bicyclists, pedestrians and drivers alike. 

As part of the Shift Your Ride campaign, the city of Fort Collins introduced Bikeway Bingo.

In 2019, Fort Collins launched the Shift campaign, developed out of the Environmental Services Department and a desire to support its Climate Action Plan. The Shift campaign was based on individuals integrating small actions into their daily lives to help the community achieve broad environmental goals. When COVID-19 struck, it made sense to build on the program to encourage people to opt out of single-occupancy vehicle rides.

“We decided to narrow the campaign down to one singular action for 2020. Since we’re a platinum designated bicycle-friendly community, it made sense to encourage a shift in transportation,” said Heimann. “Shift” became “Shift Your Ride,” and a chunk of the PeopleForBikes Foundation grant, including an additional $10,000 for marketing and communications, went toward promoting it. 

September was deemed Shift Your Ride month and Fort Collins coordinated a robust campaign, including an accessible website, pandemic-safe events like “Bikeway Bingo” and the dissemination of regular “Shift Tips” — short, shareable videos recorded by community members.

“We also developed a pledge where community members can commit to going car free one extra trip per week than they were previously doing,” said Heimann. “Our goal is to have 1,500 community members sign the pledge by Earth Day 2021.”

So far, the campaign has been a success. To date, more than 500 people have signed the pledge and in September 2020 alone, more than 80,000 community members were reached through social media. “We have never reached that many people through just our social media channels, so that was really a significant win,” said Heimann.

Left: An example of one of the permanent signs installed by the city of Fort Collins, complete with Spanish translation. Right: One of the city’s temporary wayfinding signs, created using a stencil and water-based paint.

“I will fully admit that so many of us just didn't really understand what equity meant up until 2020 and George Floyd's murder,” said Heimann. “It became clear to us that as city staff, stewards of public resources, program designers and policy influencers, we really needed to put our money and our actions where our words were — if we were going to talk about equity we had to do something about it.”

In the Shift Your Ride campaign, Fort Collins explicitly made it a goal to ensure that of the 1,500 community members who take the pledge by Earth Day 2021, 500 will be from historically marginalized and typically under-resourced community groups. As talks of evolving audience segmentation and tailored messaging became commonplace, Fort Collins decided to pilot its efforts by targeting the Latinx community, which makes up the largest minority group in the city.

Using the grant funding, Fort Collins was also able to provide permanent, dual-language wayfinding signs to improve access for the city’s Spanish speakers. Even the temporary wayfinding stencil had an equity component: The image of a woman riding a cruiser-style bike drove home the point that bike networks are for all types of riders.

Postcards made and disseminated by the City of Fort Collins, in English and Spanish.

Fort Collins’ response to the pandemic was to pivot, leaning into its existing bike network and engaging locals. When it came time to install the temporary wayfinding signs, the city tapped volunteers from their Bicycle Ambassador Program to get out and do stenciling. “We wanted to make sure there were ways we could continue to bring in our regular volunteers,” said Heimann. 

The Shift Your Ride campaign was also undoubtedly a community effort, built around a public platform where folks could exchange ideas, download resources and hold one another accountable for helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Fort Collins was intentional about not singling out motorists, but instead emphasized the importance of making small, incremental changes. 

“We're going to continue to do great things for bicycling in Fort Collins,” said Heimann. “In the very same breath, we're going to be looking at other modes and other ways that we can get people to shift their ride.”

Read about our other 2020 COVID-19 Mobility Response Grant recipient, Tucson, Arizona.

Tucson, Arizona, a recipient of our 2020 COVID-19 Mobility Response Grant, used the funding to create an equitable Slow Streets program and build community through socially distanced events. 

Gabriela Barillas works as a livability planner for the Department of Transportation and Mobility in Tucson, Arizona. The fact that her position exists at all is a testament to the city’s commitment to creating systems that function for everyone. 

“I work with neighborhoods to see how we can make streets safer so people feel more comfortable using them,” said Barillas, noting that Tucson is one of the worst cities in the country when it comes to traffic fatalities. “Ultimately, we also want to reduce some single-occupancy vehicle trips and replace them with walking, biking or transit trips.”

Tucson, which boasts a population of more than half a million, is a border town that, according to the 2010 census, is about 41% Latino.

“Along with English, Spanish is definitely the predominant language,” said Barillas. “In terms of our land use, we are a typical sprawling city with a downtown core that's growing. We also have a really ugly history of highways dividing communities that were pushed out due to red-lining and other practices.”

For that reason, Barillas’ work maintains a strong commitment to equity, which only intensified when the pandemic hit. With support from the mayor and other community leaders, Tucson was able to track what neighborhoods were being hardest hit by COVID-19 and develop a responsive transportation plan. In June 2019, the PeopleForBikes Foundation offered a cash grant of up to $20,000 to support the local implementation of mobility networks that increased biking and walking as a response to the pandemic. Along with Fort Collins, Colorado, Tucson was chosen as a recipient of the grant.

With the funding, Tucson expanded its burgeoning Slow Streets program, using temporary equipment to close and slow traffic. Federal CARES Act funds were also allocated for permanent low-cost traffic calming improvements, such as speed humps and traffic circles. What Tucson managed to accomplish in just a couple of months is impressive: The Slow Streets program reached roughly 68,000 people across 15 neighborhoods, with a 75% increase in bicycle ridership.

A parent walks with their child in the middle of one of Tucson's new slow streets.

The Importance of Support from Leadership

Across the board, Tucson’s COVID-19 response was successful thanks to the support it received from leaders at every level. The political support from Mayor Regina Romero and the City Council were critical in jumpstarting the Slow Streets program, as well as funding the semi-permanent traffic calming improvements that followed. According to Barillas, council member Lane Santa Cruz stood out for her tireless championing of mobility justice.

"Crisis response presents a new set of opportunities to do things differently — so that's what we did,” said Santa Cruz, who pushed for the Slow Streets program and a community-centered funding framework for the allocation of Tucson’s CARES dollars. “Advocating for mobility justice, we acted on the opportunity to create safe retrofits in neighborhoods that had long been neglected and make public transit free during the pandemic."

Additionally, Barillas credits Tucson's success to leaders in the community who saw value in alternative mobility networks, including neighborhood ambassadors and local journalists that helped garner public support, as well as teachers that encouraged their students to get involved in the planning process.

Tucson received 121 applications from neighborhoods lobbying to be a part of the Slow Streets program, but due to the high-demand and limited funding, Tucson decided to focus its work in communities hit the hardest by the pandemic.

Other factors taken into consideration when choosing the 15 final locations were the need for traffic calming and the lack of infrastructure; heat vulnerability; safe connections to schools, parks and transit as well as community buy-in. By letting data drive its decisions, Tucson was able to target low-income areas where the resources would have the greatest influence.

Tucson’s Slow Streets fliers, in English and Spanish.

Tucson also chose to spend an additional $10,000 in communication support funding from PeopleForBikes on their marketing and outreach efforts. Money was used to print and distribute flyers promoting Slow Streets, in English and Spanish, as well as on paid, targeted social media outreach campaigns. Crucially, the city also piloted a neighborhood block leader model to distribute flyers to the communities along Slow Streets routes and collect feedback on the semi-permanent improvements. Not only did this approach create multiple opportunities for feedback from locals on how city streets can best serve them, but it also helped ensure that the permanent infrastructure was well received.

Overall, 45 block leaders were engaged across 15 neighborhoods, ranging in age from 16 to 85. In addition, Tucson organized 14 free mobile bike repair events where locals could get their bikes fixed and take home a free bike light. “The PeopleForBikes funding was critical when it came to community engagement and getting buy-in,” said Barillas. “I think we would have gotten a lot more angry calls if we hadn’t had the built-in group of champions we did.”

Tucson is continuing to use the federal funding it received through the CARES Act to carry out more semi-permanent improvements, which will average about $50,000 per location. For future projects, Barillas hopes to engage more local nonprofits and other community organizations, as well as translate materials into more languages to educate other immigrant populations. “One thing we’re really focusing on doing right now is adding more informational signage for the streets that identify traffic circles or bike lanes,” said Barillas. “Communicating why something was done, how it happened and the history behind it — that’s really important going forward.”

Read about our other 2020 COVID-19 Mobility Response Grant recipient, Fort Collins, Colorado.

While we’re working from home, PeopleForBikes staff members have found a multitude of ways to stay mentally and physically active. We’ve done puzzles, walked our dogs, walked our dogs again, started doing at-home yoga classes, learned new recipes — did we mention puzzles? Despite all of the day-to-day changes we’ve experienced, one thing hasn’t changed much: we still love riding our bikes. 

Looking to share some of our solo rides with our coworkers as a little inspiration, it’s no surprise we turned to Ride Spot, the navigation app and social platform we developed to enable better bike riding experiences. Check out some of the social distancing friendly rides the PeopleForBikes staff have been going on over the last few weeks:

Our COO Jenn got in a great fat bike ride up in Breckenridge. While the mountain and most other on-snow businesses closed prematurely a month ago, the bike trails were wide open!

Jordan, our government relations and accounts manager, went on a nice little loop exploring her neighborhood in Denver. 

While Congressional work on COVID-19 remedies continued at a furious pace, Federal Affairs Manager Noa was able to take some time to pedal around D.C. and enjoy the freshly blooming cherry blossoms.

Riley, our marketing coordinator, enjoyed an undulating20-mile cruise around Boulder, home of PeopleForBikes HQ.

PeopleForBikes Designer Alex (or Butters, as she’s affectionately known around the office)toured the countryside around her new Indiana homebase in Bloomington. We’re definitely going to ask her to express ship some goodies from the Sausage Shack to HQ as soon as things get back to normal. 

Ashley, our regulatory and policy analyst, took a30-mile out-and-back gravel rideand cataloged some beautiful trailside murals before enjoying a tasty post-ride beer!

Our Business and Political Engagement Manager Eric shared so many rides with us it was hard to pick a favorite, but this 40-mile leg burner with 3,500 feet of climbing was a standout — especially with those drool-worthy views of snow-covered hills. 

Jose, our marketing director, explored amountain dirt road on an out-and-back ride with his wife just outside their home near Park City, Utah. While warm temps and spring weather are (almost) becoming the norm in Boulder, there’s still plenty of snow left in Utah’s Uinta range!

JJ, director of data and technology, went hunting for dinosaurs at the Triceratops Trail in her hometown of Golden. 

PFB VP of Finance Erik headed south intoDenver for a donut and espressoand even caught some kayakers practicing their version of social distancing on the South Platte River. 

Our Director of Grants and Partnerships Zoe rolled around her neighborhood. With plenty of time on their hands being home from school, local kids took to the streets with chalk drawings, words of encouragement and ideas on how to stay healthy while being house-bound. They left biking off the list, but we’ll let it slide. 

Last but not least, Eric, one of the masterminds behind Ride Spot, shared his quick lunch ride— including directions on how to make the best cup of Joe on the go!

Pedaling Through The Pandemic: Staff Rides

This year, life has been different. Putting on a mask has become almost second nature and we’ve all been spending a lot more time close to home. Thankfully, when it comes to getting out on two wheels, a world of adventure is waiting right out your front door.

No matter if it’s your first time around the block or you know it like the back of your hand, there’s never been a better time to enjoy the simple pleasures of a neighborhood bike ride. Skip the crowded trailheads and bike paths and don’t worry about planning your route: you can keep riding this fall without ever leaving your neighborhood.

Every block opens a door to new exploration. Even in the few square miles surrounding your home, the opportunities are nearly endless. What you may have driven countless times becomes entirely different when slowed down and viewed from two wheels. Literally and figuratively speaking, you can stop and smell the roses.

Riding around your neighborhood, even just around the block, can provide what a lot of us need right now — a break. Simultaneously keeping our bodies and minds healthy and active, you might be surprised at how much even a short ride can improve your day.

Just because you’re riding alone doesn’t mean you can’t share your ride with others, either. Thanks to Ride Spot, an app PeopleForBikes developed to reduce the barriers to riding, you can share all of your neighborhood adventures with family and friends. 

Here at PeopleForBikes, we’ve been sharing our local solo rides with our coworkers to inspire each other to keep riding. We’ve seen a fascinating array of wildlife, vintage cars, eclectic architecture, lush green parks and dogs of all shapes and sizes. Keep riding from your front door and share your own experiences on Ride Spot! Your friends and family (and the PeopleForBikes staff) will love seeing where your two wheels can take you.

One day, your neighborhood ride may be nothing more than a breath of fresh air between work-from-home video meetings. The next, you might spend two hours weaving block-by-block admiring your neighbors’ outdoor fall decor. That’s the magic of the neighborhood ride — there’s no wrong or right way to enjoy them, and the opportunities for trying something new can be limitless.

While other public interactions these days might seem stressful, riding your bike is a great way to get some stress-free, socially distanced enjoyment. Families on a walk to get the kids out of the house, couples enjoying the sunset on their porch, even fellow riders out on their own pedal around the block — while we might feel more apart than ever, a simple ride around your neighborhood paired with a smile and wave at passers by is a pleasant reminder that we’re all still here, and we can continue to get through this together.

This blog was originally published in May 2020 and was updated in October 2020.

At PeopleForBikes, we’re focusing our energy on maintaining the bike boom. As electric bicycles grow in popularity across the United States, they are becoming the preferred mode of transportation for many Americans in cities large and small. And for good reason: they shorten distances, squish hills and get you to your destination with ease and efficiency. 

In supporting this growing trend, some electric utility companies now offer rebates to their account holders for electric bicycle purchases. 

Burlington Electric Department and Other Utilities in Vermont

Four utility companies in the state of Vermont offer their customers rebates for electric bicycle purchases:

According to VBike, Green Mountain Power (Vermont’s largest utility company) has processed nearly 600 e-bike rebates this year — triple from last year. Even with snow cover nearly two-thirds of the year, it’s clear Vermonters see the advantages of getting around by electric bicycle. We asked Burlington Electric Department (servicing Burlington, VT) how its rebate program works, and how it came to be, so that we can help spread their message to other utility companies across the U.S. and increase access to electric bicycles.

In 2015, Vermont updated its renewable energy standards to direct utility companies in the state to “acquire fossil fuel savings from energy transformation projects.” Offering rebates for electric bicycles — along with tractors, heat pumps and more — falls within this broad charge. 

50% of emissions in the state of Vermont come from transportation. 

Burlington Electric Department was the first in the state to implement an electric bicycle rebate program and did so in partnership with nonprofits VBike and Local Motion. 

Burlington residents are eligible for a $200 rebate at the point-of-purchase at participating bike dealers in the city. 

BED calculated the price of the rebate by determining the cost of the fossil fuel that is expected to be replaced by the electric bicycle over the product’s lifetime.

Halfway across the country, the city of Austin, Texas’ energy utility company offers an electric bicycle rebate to its customers.

In 2015, the city of Austin passed a resolution to reach the goal netzero emissions by 2050 and make “Austin Energy (AE) the leading utility for greenhouse gas reductions.” 

AE took the initiative and started its E-Ride rebate program to make electric, netzero emissions transportation more accessible to Austinites.

In partnership with local dealers, AE customers are eligible for:
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AE customers have to submit a rebate form online to the company after purchasing the electric bicycle to receive their rebate.

 Have you used a utility-based rebate program (or something else) to help finance your electric bicycle purchase? We want to hear from you: email noa@peopleforbikes.org to share your experience. 

Due to the constantly changing dimensions of the COVID-19 crisis, we encourage you to follow all current CDC guidelines as well as local travel advisories and recommendations. Take care of yourselves and loved ones. We’re all in this together. 

Despite the many new rules and regulations dictating our daily lives, bike riding — safely — isn’t canceled. A lot of Americans are getting on their bikes right now, many of them new to cycling or getting back in the saddle for the first time in years. Whether it’s a healthy break, both physical and mental, from being isolated or as an alternative form of transportation to get around town, bikes are providing welcome relief from our new socially distanced lifestyle.

Whether you’re finding yourself on a bike for the first time in a while or just wondering how you can change your usual cycling routine to comply with the quarantine, we’ve collected a short list of tips on how to stay safe on your bike.

We already said this above, but it’s worth reiterating. Before you head out, make sure you’re up to date on all national CDC recommendations as well as local travel advisories. These laws vary state-by-state, and even county-by-county, so be sure to know how, when and where you can legally and safely ride in your area.

By now we’re sure you’re well acquainted with 2020’s most important new phrase, and yes, it even applies to riding your bike. Maintain at least six feet of space between you and other riders and pedestrians, especially when stopped at intersections or when passing on the road or trail. Avoiding popular/crowded paths and trail networks is also key.

While most of us love group rides, they’re going to have to wait for now. Even with social distancing measures, it’s still best to fly solo for the time being. Share your plans with friends or family before going on your ride. Let them know your route and when you plan on being back. We recommend Ride Spot, but any GPS-based location tracking app can be very helpful.

Make sure your tires are inflated and your bike is running smooth before heading out the door. While bike shops are considered “essential businesses” in most states, not all shops have stayed open. Some have limited hours. Plan ahead. Make sure your toolkit is properly stocked to handle any roadside repair that might come up, and bring plenty of water and snacks.

With hospitals and healthcare professionals overworked and overwhelmed as it is, now isn’t the time to pursue personal records or tackle that extra-technical section of trail. Take this time to keep your mind fresh and body healthy and active without going overboard. 

Before embarking on your ride, use Ride Spot to find a safe route or map your own. Consider sticking around home and exploring your own neighborhood. Cruise local roads you don’t travel often — you might even discover a new coffee shop, bar or restaurant to visit once the crisis clears. 

We’re all going through a lot right now. A friendly smile or wave to fellow riders or pedestrians will be appreciated. Remember, we’re all in this together. 

Due to the constantly changing dimensions of the COVID-19 crisis, we encourage you to follow all current CDC guidelines as well as local travel advisories and recommendations. Take care of yourselves and loved ones. We’re all in this together.

Today, June 3, is World Bicycle Day — a timely opportunity to celebrate bicycling’s increasing relevance and widespread growth. It’s a great day to ride a bike!

In the U.S. alone, close to 10 million people will pedal today. Many are absolute newcomers to cycling and others are returning to the saddle after years or even decades away. Nearly all will enjoy great experiences and get to where they need to go.

2020 will likely stand as the biggest year for U.S. bicycling since 1973. Sales — particularly of low-cost bikes, e-bikes and kids models – should approach all-time annual highs. Riding participation may break all records, increasing by 20 percent or more in just about every category, on pavement, on dirt, at parks and hopefully (soon) to work and school. Given that Americans traditionally take nearly five billion bike trips a year, this rise is significant.

Lifestyle changes imposed by COVID-19 have been a huge factor in this growth. The pandemic has inspired millions of Americans to reassess what’s important and ask themselves how they want to live. In a sea of bad news and unprecedented challenges, this is a good thing. A new concept of modern living is taking shape. It’s slower paced, more focused on people and simple pleasures, and better for the planet. Bike riding is a growing part of it.

Bike riding checks so many boxes. For short trips, it’s one of the easiest ways to advance from point A to point B. Bicycling contributes to physical and mental health. It’s fun. It’s inexpensive. It helps reduce air pollution, road congestion and climate change. All of these assets make bike riding a contemporary solution.

Despite all these positives, the simple truth is that bike riding has struggled to maintain its place in an increasingly crowded, high-tech world. In 1973, American drove 1.28 trillion miles in cars and trucks. In 2017, the total was 3.2 trillion — an increase of nearly two trillion miles on an annual basis. During this same period, the U.S. population grew from 212 million to 325 million people: that’s 113 million more people fighting for their piece of the same space.

More people and more crowded roads everywhere: these trends haven’t been good for bicycling.  Fewer parents have allowed their kids to ride, unsupervised, on streets. Distracted driving that’s fueled by the omnipresent cell phone hasn’t helped.

Bicycling has also suffered from an image problem. For sure, our car culture has fostered the idea that roads are designated  for the exclusive use of cars and trucks and that people on bikes and foot don’t belong. Resistance to bikes has been fueled by an impression that riders don’t follow the rules. Too many Americans view cycling as a strange fringe activity. Tension on roads everywhere seems to have increased.

But now, we seem to be turning the corner in a big way. It’s easier to imagine a future where bicycling is central and helpful in our daily lives. The rise has begun!

A recent poll of 1,000 Americans concluded that 50 percent plan to ride bikes more often post-pandemic.

While organized children’s sports programs have been on hold, millions of kids have enjoyed their first bike rides. Many are likely to continue when restrictions end; some will ride their entire lives.

Family cycling has grown everywhere. Chances are good that you’ve seen this wherever you live. Bike riding is one of few outdoor activities that parents and kids can do together that’s safe, close to home and maintains social distance. People are having great two-wheel experiences and they’ll seek them forever.

City leaders coast to coast have been decisively reallocating street space to encourage people to bike and walk. While many of these alterations are temporary, some will remain in place for years to come. Independent of these quick fixes, thousands of miles of new bike lanes, paths and trails are being built in cities and on public lands. Transportation and recreation choices are being prioritized. Complete, seamless bike networks will support that goal.

Going forward, financially strapped cities will need to rely on inexpensive solutions. They won’t have the money to build new transit and new roads. Bus, train and subway use is sure to suffer, at least in the short term, as people try to avoid crowded spaces. As bike trips increase, they’ll contribute to tangible reductions in road congestion and air pollution and they’ll deliver the metrics that city leaders value.

This year, nearly one in three Americans will ride a bike. This is a resurgence. Bicycling is becoming more mainstream, more popular and more important as a timely solution to daunting societal challenges. These are just a few of the many reasons to celebrate World Bicycle Day.

2020 has taught us many lessons, and one of the biggest things we’ve learned is that the world is widely connected and so are its challenges. Many of them are BIG challenges — the kind we might often think a bicycle has nothing to do with.

As the COVID-19 pandemic swept across the globe, as many of The Bike Cooperative’s independent members have experienced, the world rekindled its love for the potential in two wheels: for recreation, transportation, health, community, mobility and more. 

With more people cycling worldwide, the intersection of challenge and potential is clear. As the bike industry experiences unprecedented demand, it’s also clear that bikes and bike retailers can make a real difference.

Jenn Dice, PeopleForBikes’ new President and CEO, put it best in her recent op-ed, “We are witnessing a momentum for bikes as an instrument of change. Bikes can be a smart solution to help improve urban mobility, air quality, traffic congestion and mental and physical health. Bikes can also play an important role in our climate change goals, resiliency planning and mobility justice.”

Children are our future, and the role our communities play in amplifying their potential has never been more clear. That’s why The Bike Cooperative is excited to support PeopleForBikes and the Youth Bike Summit with nearly $13,000 in donations from member retailers across the U.S. (listed below), as well as matched donations from The Bike Cooperative itself.


The donated funds will help support youth cycling groups nationwide complete their Youth Bike Summit Justice Journey, where they will ride bikes in their communities to raise awareness and funds for accommodation and transportation to the Youth Bike Summit in fall of 2021 in Atlanta.


As a co-op of local bike retailers, community is critical to us. Bikes empower kids from communities across the country to experience things that might not have been possible without a set of wheels, and our members are excited to make that happen for more kids.


As local retailers know: when nearly 70 cents of every locally spent dollar stays local, the result is better funding for community programs like trails, classes, programs and more.  As a cooperative of independent bike retailers, this dynamic is central to everything we do: empowering local bike shops to stay local and sustain the cultural, social and economic advantages they bring to their communities.


Bike Cooperative members noted the importance of bicycle retailers in promoting advocacy efforts and engaging their communities through bicycling. “We feel that it is incumbent upon us brick and mortar retailers as pillars of the cycling community to support advocacy efforts of all types geared towards inclusivity and supporting efforts to groom the next generation of cyclists,” said Nik Obriecht, general manager of Race Pace Bicycles in Baltimore. “Partnering with The Bike Cooperative and PeopleForBikes in these efforts is a win for everyone.”

“We are happy to support the Youth Bike Summit by donating our buydown refund,” added John McConnochie, owner of Cycle Alaska in Juneau. “We feel the summit provides a great venue to engage the next generation of bicycling enthusiasts.”

This year we’ve learned that powerful change starts small, and we firmly believe that passionate kids riding bikes will do the very same for cycling and their communities.


The Youth Bike Summit is a three-day, annual conference which brings together cycling-centered youth community leaders to educate, share and advocate for a better world through bikes. Educators, researchers, policy makers, community leaders and advocates from urban areas across the U.S. and Canada join with student leaders for workshops, tours, presentations, discussion and visioning about how they can make a difference through bicycling in their own communities.



Contributing Members of The Bike Cooperative

This partnership wouldn’t be possible without the support and financial contributions from our member companies. It is because of the businesses below that we can help foster and support the next generation of bike riders.  

Challenge Meets Potential: Children are the Future of Cycling

While everyone is talking about kids returning to school this fall in the midst of a pandemic, there needs to be more discussions on the topic of how they will get there. Addressing increased and complicated transportation needs is necessary for a safe return to school in 2020. Many school districts across the U.S. are facing a reduction in bus routes which shoulders families with the task of coordinating transportation to and from school for their children. Some students will be on staggered schedules, requiring them to get themselves to and from school while their parents may be working. Other families are asking themselves how they will remain active and healthy as they settle into remote learning from home. 

Luckily, Safe Routes Partnership (SRP) has some solutions. “At the start of COVID-19, we created a resource spreadsheet on our Safe Routes to School listserv which we used to collect and share ideas about how to keep programs going during the pandemic,” said Kori Johnson, program support manager for SRP. “We recognized the need to provide more support in the field and the need for a resource that was accessible, actionable and tailored to different learning scenarios.”  

Safe Routes Partnership, funded in part by PeopleForBikes, works with community stakeholders all across the U.S. to support and promote safe walking and biking to and from school and beyond. After starting in the ‘90s in a few school districts, Safe Routes to School programs became more established with federal funding in 2005. Safe Routes Partnership now helps with Safe Routes programming in rural, urban and suburban communities in all 50 states. Engaging local leaders through a variety of strategies and tools, they work to build communities that are safer, more active and more equitable. 

Faced with the daunting task of developing a comprehensive set of recommendations to meet the transportation needs of communities nationwide as students return to school, the SRP team decided on a collaborative approach. The result is a comprehensive guide to Back to School 2020-21 which addresses remote, hybrid and in-person learning scenarios and leaves enough room for families to adapt to whatever local COVID-19 safety measures may be in place. SRP’s website offers numerous links to downloadable, step-by-step resources for meeting the transportation needs of your community in creative and healthy ways. 

“The guide is designed to be used by anyone with a stake in getting students to and from school, but it extends beyond that as well,” said Margaux Mennesson, communications and marketing director for SRP. “The resources are ‘plug and play’ and provide a variety of short-term, actionable items that can be easily and quickly implemented.” 

“We decided the best way to go was to engage the people on the ground who are the experts and we ended up with over 180 responses to incorporate as we developed the resource,” said Becky Gilliam, Pacific Northwest regional policy manager at SRP and one of the authors of the resource guide. “We asked participants to center their lived experiences and provide detail as to how that affected their recommendations. We ended up with a female/BIPOC lead group spanning five time zones.”

This representation was key in developing recommendations that meet the needs of communities facing the highest barriers to transportation equity and access. “It was clear from the feedback of the working group that transportation is an essential need,” said Johnson. “In order to achieve true equity, we have to assess the needs of those whose ability to move have been most affected by the pandemic. You have to consider things like, if your neighborhood has no sidewalks, how do you simply go out for a stroll?”

Above all, the Safe Routes Partnership team is hopeful that local leaders and stakeholders will feel encouraged and emboldened by this resource guide and they maintain an overwhelmingly optimistic outlook about this collectively challenging time.

“This is a unique opportunity for communities to step back and explore safer and healthier alternative modes of transportation and ways to stay active during a global pandemic,” Gilliam said. “Recognizing existing and exacerbated challenges while leaning into difficulties we have presents us with an opportunity to honor the moment we are in and stick through the more challenging conversations as we come together. There are opportunities to develop ways of supporting each other beyond getting to and from school such as partnering with local agencies for meal drop offs or connecting to mutual aid groups”

“The message we want to get across with this guide is really that no matter who or where you are, you can have the confidence and courage to do what you need to do,” Johnson emphasized. “Don’t be afraid to try something different. Everything is going to be different this year and that is fine.”

Back to school 2020-21 provides us with another chance to think beyond the car as we re-examine how we move and put into place healthy, accessible, fun and community centered modes of transportation.  

Learn more about the Safe Routes Partnership and access their Back to School 2020 Guide. 

People for Bikes

Biking During COVID-19

PeopleForBikes at Work on Biking During COVID-19

News

Fighting to Make Our Streets Safer

Lessons From London’s Bike Surge

Electric Bicycles as a Tool for Essential Workers and Low-Income Populations

PeopleForBikes’ 2021 Must-Reads

Stay Safe, Stay Seen, Stay Pedaling: Helpful Tips to Keep Riding

Getting People to Shift Their Ride

A Data-Driven Pandemic Response

Pedaling Through The Pandemic: Staff Rides

The Power of a Neighborhood Ride

Electrifying the Bike Boom

Safe Cycling During Social Distancing

Celebrating The Rise of Bicycling

Challenge Meets Potential: Children are the Future of Cycling

Safe Routes Partnership Centers Equity and Adaptability in Getting Back to School in 2020

New to Biking? How to Ride Safely and Courteously Through 2020 and Beyond

How to Ride Together Even When We're Apart

The Gift of Gravel: Why You Should Take Your Bike Off Road This Fall

An Earth Day Different From the Rest

What a $2 Trillion Federal Stimulus Package Means for You and Your Business

Riding More Now? Just Starting? We’re Here to Help

People for Bikes