If you follow Clean Air Council on social media or get our emails you’ve probably been asked to participate in Bike Month or Cycle September. But why are these programs which seek to increase biking in Philadelphia an important effort for protecting clean air?
Transportation makes up the largest share of greenhouse gas emissions in the US. In Philadelphia, in addition to the emissions impacts, single occupancy vehicles are a major cause of traffic congestion which means idling cars and the exhaust they release lower air quality. To combat the ways car travel negatively influences the air we breathe, Council staff implement programs that encourage people to switch to sustainable forms of transportation. Getting more people riding bikes is an important part of the solution in helping to make our air cleaner, roads safer, and limit the contribution from single occupancy vehicles to CO2 emissions.
During Cycle September and Bike Month in May, the Council uses the Love to Ride online platform to encourage people of all backgrounds, identities, and experience levels to challenge themselves to bike for transportation. A transportation trip is any bike ride that’s primary purpose is to get to (or from) a destination, for instance biking to work, the store, or to visit a friend. While there are many personal, communal, and global benefits to biking for transportation, there are also some real barriers for many people to switch to biking. The daunting task of navigating biking on busy city streets, not owning a bicycle, or a lack of available bike parking at work or other destinations are just a few of the reasons that can make it a challenge to try biking. Communities need interventions to make cycling more accessible for people. The Love to Ride platform helps to eliminate some of these barriers by connecting new and occasional cyclists with the resources and community support to get them biking during the challenge month and keep them biking in the future. In turn, bike challenges like Cycle September help get more people invested in biking in the region, and passionate about supporting bike infrastructure in their local community.
During the Cycle September workplace challenge, workplaces across the greater Philadelphia region register for free on the Love to Ride website and compete against other workplaces of similar sizes to get more people biking during the month. Individuals and workplaces win prizes, and this challenge rewards new riders for setting up and achieving personal goals. Workplaces are an important space to promote biking, because for people who work in-person, replacing even a few car commutes with bike commutes is a great way to decrease pollution. One study found that switching one trip from car to bike reduces an average commuter’s total transportation emissions that day by 67%. Even for workplaces that are fully virtual the challenge provides a good way for coworkers to reconnect while working together to become more sustainable.
As September approaches you can sign up your workplace to participate in this year’s challenge, donate a prize to help encourage biking, or start setting your own goals to replace car trips with bike rides.
To learn more about the Cycle September and Bike Month reach out to Maya Frydman, Transportation Outreach Coordinator at mfrydman@cleanair.org.
National Bike Month is right around the corner. This May, join people across the Philadelphia region and beyond embracing biking as a great way to travel while doing your part to improve air quality and reduce your carbon footprint. Beyond the benefits of biking for you, your community, and the world, this May Bike Month you can win prizes and compete with your friends and coworkers. Learn more about the Love to Ride May Bike Month challenge and how you can ride an Indego bike to participate.
Looking for a way to stay motivated to bike all month? Sign up for the Love to Ride Bike Month Challenge. This free, online, biking competition gives you a place to record all your bike rides, set goals for yourself, and earn points to win prizes by biking and encouraging others to bike!
How does it work? Just create a team of up to ten people; these can be friends, family or co-workers. Together, your team earns points by riding, and encouraging each other to ride and will compete against other teams of similar experience levels. Regardless of your experience level, this challenge is right for you. In fact, new riders earn DOUBLE the points, so if you are new to biking this is a great way to get involved. Prizes, including a bike worth $1,500, are up for grabs, so if you are already planning to bike this month, make sure you are signed up and logging those rides.
Don’t have a bike of your own? No problem! Philadelphia’s favorite bike share, Indego, is turning 7 years old this April 23rd! To celebrate this milestone, as well as Bike Month, Indego is offering the first month of the Indego30 and Indego30 Access pass at a greatly reduced price. From April 23rd – May 31st new riders can use the code INDEPRO22 at www.rideindego.com for a $5 Indego30 pass or $2.50 Indego30 Access pass! With this Indego pass, riders get an unlimited number of 60-minute rides for 30 days! This pass is great for exploring the city and trails on your schedule. Indego is excited to give folks who have always wanted to try bike share the opportunity to do so! Once you have signed up for your Indego pass remember to log your rides with Love to Ride, for the chance to win a full free year-long Indego pass!
Since last Bike Month there have been some major improvements to bike facilities, bike lanes, and bike paths around the cities. In addition to the numerous new Indego stations installed this year (check out the map below!), the Chestnut St. bridge has finally reopened with a parking protected bike lane, and Circuit Trails have been extended including at Bartram’s Garden. You can see existing bike lanes, find Circuit Trails, and see all the Indego stations on GoPhillyGo, as well as map out your bike routes – including using an Indego bike. So if you are looking for a trail to bike on, or just want to map out the safest route to your destination this bike month, there are plenty of tools to help you.
So grab your bike or sign up for an Indego pass and commit to biking this May!
This blog was written jointly by the Clean Air Council and Indego Bike Share.
