For Employers - How to Make Your Business Bike-Friendly

So you'd like to encourage bike commuting at your workplace and are curious how to do it? BikeArlington can help. We have adapted information provided below by the wonderful resources written by BikeSonoma and Commuter Connections. For additional assistance on implementing a bicycle commute program at your office, contact BikeArlington at 703-228-5027.

How to Make Your Workplace Bike-friendly

1) Offer a free class on bike commuting to your employees.

BikeArlington offers free classes for companies wanting to encourage bike commuting. At these 1.5-hour classes, your employees will learn the following:

Rules of the Road: Knowing is half the battle! Did you know that you have to adhere to the same rules of the road as a car or truck does? Did you know that you have the same rights that the operator of a car or truck does? Well its true - you do! Our course offers some great tips and tricks for safely and legally using our roadways.
Avoiding the Common Causes of Crashes: Believe it or not, most crashes are avoidable. Learn what to do if a car turns suddenly in front of you, if you have to stop suddenly, what to do to avoid the dreaded car door and much more!
Lane Positioning: Do you ever feel like cars are passing you too closely or running you into the gutter? Learn proper lane positioning to encourage drivers to pass you at a safe distance. Also learn how to safely cross lanes of traffic in order to made turns or avoid obstacles in the road.
Improving Pedaling Efficiency: Bicycling shouldn’t be backbreaking work! The bicycle is one of the most efficient inventions of all time- make the most of it! Learn how to shift gears in anticipation of a hill, achieve a good cadence, and minimize the wear and tear on your knees.
Useful Accessory Equipment: We all know you need a helmet, but learn some other helpful and handy equipment to make your ride more enjoyable.
Basic Bike Maintenance and Repair: Everyone who rides a bike should know some basic repair and maintenance skills. Learn how to change a flat tire and other emergency repair tips.

Contact BikeArlington at 703.228.5027 to sign-up your Arlington-based organization for this class.

2) Have BikeArlington provide a FREE workplace bicycle and pedestrian facilities review.

Arlington employers may take advantage of BikeArlington's free review of the bicycle and pedestrian facilities and programs at their business along with suggestions for improvements. The review will include a site visit and meeting with key personnel at your workplace and a report summarizing the findings with recommendation on improvements to facilities and programs to encourage more employees to walk or bike to work.

3) Encourage biking at your workplace.

Arlington Transportation Partners (ATP) offers a free service provided to Arlington employers. ATP makes it easy and convenient for you to establish and administer biking and walking programs at your workplace. Ways ATP can help include:

Assist in organizing a Bike to Work Day,
Provide information on biking and walking programs,
Explain biking and walking options, and
Sponsor a workshop or seminar to explain biking and walking programs.

Contact ATP at 703.247.9299 to request assistance.

Why Implement a Bicycle Commute Program?

Employee Health. Bicycle commuting enables office workers to fit regular exercise into their busy, but often sedentary, work routines. People who exercise, including those who do it on the way to work, are healthier and more energetic. This translates to employer cost savings: Greater productivity, less sick leave time, fewer workman's compensation claims, and lower overall health care costs.

Employee Morale. Employees who arrive at work by bicycle are more alert and relaxed, having exercised during their commute. They avoid the stress of driving through rush-hour congestion and delays, and don't need to worry about finding parking. Bicycle commuters will recognize and appreciate employer support for their transportation and exercise mode.

Reduced Traffic Congestion. Bicycling enhances the transportation system upon which all businesses depend. Increasing the number of trips made by bicycle expands the carrying capacity of our existing infrastructure, and lessens the demand for costly roadway expansions. Cyclists can easily maneuver through and around snarled traffic, covering short distances in equal or less time than car drivers, and arriving at work on time more often.

Zero Pollution. Bicycles are 100% non-polluting since they are powered by people and not fossil fuels. Every trip made by a bike instead of a car reduces the burden of low-level ozone, nitrous oxides, carbon dioxide, soot and noise on our environment and our health. Since short (0-5 miles) car-trips are the most polluting type of trip, encouraging employees who live within five miles of work to commute by bicycle can make a huge difference in everyone's quality of life.

Good Corporate Citizenship. Support for bicycle commuting promotes your company's public image as a community-oriented and environmentally responsible employer. It says to the public that your company is concerned about pollution, traffic congestion, energy use, overall public health, and the well-being of your employees.

How to Get Started

Appoint a Bike Coordinator

This is the individual responsible for planning and carrying out project goals, and for acting as a liaison between project participants and company administration. Choose a person whose other job responsibilities provide a logical tie-in to employee bicycle commuting promotions, such as your company's human services, community relations, wellness or employee transportation coordinator. It is helpful if this individual is a cyclist, but even more importantly, they should have enthusiasm, autonomy, and time to develop the program.

Assess current commuter habits and bicycle commuting potential at your business.

Begin by taking inventory of facilities and programs that already exist at or near your business related to bicycle commuting. Are showers, lockers, changing facilities, and/or bicycle parking already provided on site? Is there already an employee wellness program to which a bicycle commuting component could be added?

Provide Bike Parking

Make sure the parking is:

clearly labeled,
accessible by a convenient ramp,
located as close to the building entrance and shower facilities as possible,
sheltered from the elements,
located where there is pedestrian traffic, security personnel, or in a locked room,
well lit, and
sufficiently separated or protected from automobile parking to prevent damage to parked bicycles by cars.

Here are Arlington's Bicycle Parking Guidelines:

1 employee space for every 7,500 square feet.
1 visitor space for 20,000 square feet.
2 customer spaces for every 10,000 square feet of retail.
1 shower per gender for every 50,000 square feet.

While Arlington does not recommend any specific vendors, we can provide information on various styles of bike racks offered by many companies from which employers may choose.

Provide Showers and Changing Facilities If Not Available

Some employees will not consider biking to work with out the assurance that they can shower when they arrive. Showers also allow employees to exercise at lunch. In buildings with 50-100 employees, one showers should be sufficient. In buildings with 100-250 employees, one shower for each sex should be provided. Buildings housing over 250 employees should provide at least four showers with two of them being accessible to the disabled.

Provide Incentives

Recognize bicyclists at company-wide functions with certificates or t-shirts emphasizing bicyclists environmental or health awareness.
Offer flex-time schedules. Make it possible for bicycle commuters to arrange their work schedules to avoid peak-hour traffic congestion and darkness or to take bikes on Metrorail.
Permit a more relaxed dress code on specified days.
Provide a company-owned pool of bicycles for short business trips, errands, and recreation.
Allow an occasional 15 minute grace period for bicyclist who experience a breakdown of similar incident which causes them to arrive at work late.
Offer financial help to purchase a bicycle or accessories.
Give cash to bicyclists for part or all the parking spaces they do not use if your business subsidizes parking.

Market Your Program

Publicize the bicycle program and facilities at your workplace. Reserve a bulletin board and newsletter space for bicycle related information. Often employees are unaware of the programs and facilities available to them. Once they know about them, they are more likely to use them.
Publicize the bicycle commuter program outside the workplace to enhance your company's profile in the community. Using press releases, interviews and events, make the local media aware of your organization's program. Become involved locally in bicycle issues and events.
Hold workshops on bicycle commuting, maintenance, safety and other biking and walking topics. Lunch hour is good time for these workshops. Contact WABA to schedule a workshop 202-518-0524.

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