Bike to Work Days (Year-Round)!
/by Mark Frieden, Crossbow Strategies
Tired of road traffic or Metro delays? Have you ever considered riding a bike to work? The annual Bike to Work Day is celebrated on the third Friday of May, (5/19/17), not only in the Washington, DC area, but also around the country. In the Washington area, Bike to Work Day is organized by Commuter Connections and the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) and sponsored by area companies and biking organizations. If you’re looking for people in your area to ride with, you can post on the Bike Arlington forum, even if you don’t live in Arlington. On your way to work or on your way home next Friday, you can stop at one of the 85 area pit stops along the way.
Bike infrastructure in the Washington area has grown substantially over the last several years with protected bike lanes and connected bike trails, making bike commuting much safer for riders and for motorists. Capital Bikeshare has grown to over 440 stations with 3,700 bikes in DC, Arlington, Alexandria, Montgomery County and now in Fairfax County centered around the Tysons and Reston areas. The service offers daily, monthly, annual and corporate memberships. This is a great solution for getting to and from a bus or train station that may be further away than you want to walk.
Want to make biking to work a habit instead of just one day a year? Here’s what you’ll need to commute by bike to your office and back home. In addition to having a bike in good working condition, you’ll need a helmet, water bottle and a backpack or panniers to carry clothing and other work items. To lighten your load while cycling in on the middle days of the week you can drive in or take public transit to work on Monday with clothes for those days then do the reverse on Friday when you bring home all the clothes.
The obvious benefit of biking to work is the exercise, but it can also save you money in terms of fuel, maintenance and parking. When I biked to work from Arlington to DC, I was also able to enjoy views of the Potomac River, Jefferson Memorial and the Mall. Once I got to work, showered changed and sat at my desk, I was more energized for the work day.
Employers can earn LEED points for their building and add points for their company’s B Impact Assessment in order to become a Certified B Corporation by providing incentives for employees to bike to work such as bike racks and changing facilities. In the Washington area, benefits are available for bike commuters and employers.
If you want more tips on biking to work, providing incentives for your employees to participate or how you can make getting to work easier for your staff, please contact me at mark@crossbowstrategies.com