Incentives for cycle commutig

Davidm said:

Hi all

We're starting a green transport committee at work. I'm really just
interested in the cycling bit, and wondering what clever ideas people have
for encouraging cycling to work. It's a govt department so it can't be too
creative (heh) but seriously I have read before of all sorts of incentive
schemes....

Step one: shower and (ideally) locker room facilities. If you don't have
at least a shower, forget it; people will be whinging about the odour,
which is a good incentive to _not_ cycle in.

Step two: secure bicycle lockup facilities.

After this, you can look at more creative options. Some that spring to
mind to discourage car use (as distinct from encourage bike use) are:

* Charge a fee -- a significant one -- for a car parking permit. No
permit, no use of the carpark.
* Progressively convert more and more carpark spaces into other uses
(eg: the bicycle lockup facilities mentioned above.)

And for encouraging bike use:
* Competitions and/or random prizes for those who cycle in on a
regular basis -- say, at least three times a week for a couple of
months.
* Office upgrades -- or other equipment upgrades -- for cyclists ahead
of others 🙂

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Davidm said:

We're starting a green transport committee at work. I'm really just
interested in the cycling bit, and wondering what clever ideas people have
for encouraging cycling to work. It's a govt department so it can't be too
creative (heh) but seriously I have read before of all sorts of incentive
schemes....

Quoted message said:

I was thinking of the basic "upgrade end of trip facilities" as well as some
fundraising cycling events to raise awareness, but I feel if there must be
other clever strategies we could learn from...

Depending on your trip, bicycles can be as fast, if not faster than a car.
And, if you live in Sydney, it's a damn sight faster than trains.
--
Linux Registered User # 302622 <http://counter.li.org>

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

>> "Davidm" == Davidm <[email hidden]> writes:

Davidm> Hi all We're starting a green transport committee at
Davidm> work. I'm really just interested in the cycling bit, and
Davidm> wondering what clever ideas people have for encouraging
Davidm> cycling to work. It's a govt department so it can't be too
Davidm> creative (heh) but seriously I have read before of all sorts
Davidm> of incentive schemes....

Encourage those who already cycle to brag about how much they look
forward to the commute to and from work ;-)
--
Cheers
Euan

<[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

>>> "Davidm" == Davidm <[email hidden]> writes:

Quoted message said:

Encourage those who already cycle to brag about how much they look
forward to the commute to and from work ;-)

Oh yes, I do this often. Maybe t'll work eventually, but when it's either 6
degrees coming in or 42 going home, people tend to remember it :-)

Cheers
David M

"Stuart Lamble" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Step one: shower and (ideally) locker room facilities. If you don't have
at least a shower, forget it; people will be whinging about the odour,
which is a good incentive to _not_ cycle in.

We've got a fairly ordinary one of these that I'm looking at getting
upgraded. More locker room space, cleaner and more private showers,
security, etc.

Quoted message said:

Step two: secure bicycle lockup facilities.

We've got an external "shed" with a fairly uncontrolled key system, shared
by others including the social club etc, and one row of toaster racks. I'm
looking at leaving the toasters and ading a lot of u-rail tpe racks, and
having the locking changed over to operate with our swipe cards so it can be
controlled on a "per user" basis...

Quoted message said:

After this, you can look at more creative options. Some that spring to
mind to discourage car use (as distinct from encourage bike use) are:

* Charge a fee -- a significant one -- for a car parking permit. No
permit, no use of the carpark.

We don't have staff [arking except for a small number of senior people. So
no luck there. Mind you, plenty of people still park a couple of blocks away
in the 2 hour street parking and then wander up every 2 hours to move their
car!

Quoted message said:

* Progressively convert more and more carpark spaces into other uses
(eg: the bicycle lockup facilities mentioned above.)

hmmm....by the use of bike lockers in car bays? Good idea....

Quoted message said:

And for encouraging bike use:
* Competitions and/or random prizes for those who cycle in on a
regular basis -- say, at least three times a week for a couple of
months.

Good idea also....

Quoted message said:

* Office upgrades -- or other equipment upgrades -- for cyclists ahead
of others 🙂

Hmmm...that'd be way too hard to do in an organisation that can;t even get
equipment upgrades right for those people who actually NEED them!!

Thanks for the ideas so far, keep em coming guys!

Cheers
David M

"John Tserkezis" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Depending on your trip, bicycles can be as fast, if not faster than a
car. And, if you live in Sydney, it's a damn sight faster than trains.

I live 5km fom work (work's in the CBD). My ride is 10 minutes. My bus trip
is usually 40 minutes (need to change onto a CAT bus, free clipper service).
My drive is not that long, but more than 10 minutes and by the time I'v
found parking and got to the office, probably 25 minutes. That's wh, even if
I'm sick or the weather's really bad, I can't bear not to ride :-)

Cheers
David M

Davidm said:

I live 5km fom work (work's in the CBD). My ride is 10 minutes. My bus trip
is usually 40 minutes (need to change onto a CAT bus, free clipper service).
My drive is not that long, but more than 10 minutes and by the time I'v
found parking and got to the office, probably 25 minutes. That's wh, even if
I'm sick or the weather's really bad, I can't bear not to ride :-)

I ride through Sydney city every so often, and given the choice (if the smell
isn't going to be an issue, or there are showers at the destination) the bike
is a LOT faster.

There was a recent discussion on reducing the speed limit to 40Km/h in the
city, and I really don't think that's going to make a difference. I struggle
to do 40, and I still get through the city much faster than any car.

My work trip is 30Km by bike, 25 by car. A bicycle is faster. The same
motorcycle trip is faster than a bicycle, but that's lanesplitting and being a
little enthusiastic on the throttle.
--
Linux Registered User # 302622 <http://counter.li.org>

Davidm said:

Hi all

We're starting a green transport committee at work. I'm really just
interested in the cycling bit, and wondering what clever ideas people have
for encouraging cycling to work. It's a govt department so it can't be too
creative (heh) but seriously I have read before of all sorts of incentive
schemes....

I was thinking of the basic "upgrade end of trip facilities" as well as some
fundraising cycling events to raise awareness, but I feel if there must be
other clever strategies we could learn from...

TIA
David M

Which state are you in? (happy, sad, indifferent)

Sorry I'll be serious now. Anyway, does your workplace have a Bicycle User Group? The end of trip facilities, secure parking and a positive attitude from management are absolutely vital to create a incentive for people to ride to work. Gather information for cyclists in your workplace such as, local route info, what to wear, local bike shops, setting up a bike for commuting. Think about organising outside of work rides with local clubs & other cycling groups. Bicycle Victoria organises the Ride to Work Day, this year it's October 5th.
Regarding end of trip stuff, slightly wordy, but important:Victorian Planning Provisions - Bicycle Facilities

Other related stuff from the US, Bike commuters could see cash

Davidm said:

Hi all

We're starting a green transport committee at work. I'm really just
interested in the cycling bit, and wondering what clever ideas people have
for encouraging cycling to work. It's a govt department so it can't be too
creative (heh) but seriously I have read before of all sorts of incentive
schemes....

I was thinking of the basic "upgrade end of trip facilities" as well as some
fundraising cycling events to raise awareness, but I feel if there must be
other clever strategies we could learn from...

I've spotted hints of some law in uk.rec.cycling that looks like
cyclists getting reimbursed for part of their bike purchase. I don't
know more than that but perhaps it has something to do with giving up a
car spot for monetary reward or a tax bonus if you ride x days out of y
days??

Sorry, that's very vague, I'll try and find some more info about it but
for now I need to drink another few litres (of water!!) and go sleepy
night night time.. or something.

hippy
'brainfaded#$&^..[signal ends]'

Davidm said:

Hi all

We're starting a green transport committee at work. I'm really just
interested in the cycling bit, and wondering what clever ideas people have
for encouraging cycling to work...

Hi David,

There have already been some really good suggestions. At my last job we
had:
* Semi secure bike parking (MIL key access to bike racks in onsite carpark.)
* Showers

I would have loved to have had:
* Bike lockers. Individual ones which hide bikes from prying eyes. (I
only have the one racing bike that I use/d for training/commuting)
* More showers (This was only a problem in summer when the fair weather
cyclists came out of their caves...)
* Lockers right in the shower area. (We had 5 floors of office space and
showers on the top, middle and lower floors, and lockers in the
intermediate floors...grrr)
* Drying racks for wet clothes. I had to resort to fans and a heater at
my desk with my gear hanging up and laid out all over the place on wet days.

HTH
--
Brett

In article said:

We don't have staff [arking except for a small number of senior people. So
no luck there. Mind you, plenty of people still park a couple of blocks away
in the 2 hour street parking and then wander up every 2 hours to move their
car!

How about requiring everyone to remain in the office for a 3 hour block
- no exceptions. (Training session perhaps? Big staff meeting?)
Maybe ring up the blue bombers & hint that they might get a lot of
revenue that day. :-)

Quoted message said:

...
Thanks for the ideas so far, keep em coming guys!

Cheers
David M

---

--
K.A. Moylan
Canberra, Australia
Ski Club: http://www.cccsc.asn.au
kamoylan at ozemail dot com dot au

I live 5km fom work (work's in the CBD). My ride is 10 minutes. My bus trip
is usually 40 minutes (need to change onto a CAT bus, free clipper service).
My drive is not that long, but more than 10 minutes and by the time I'v
found parking and got to the office, probably 25 minutes. That's wh, even if
I'm sick or the weather's really bad, I can't bear not to ride :-)

Cheers
David M[/QUOTE]
CAT bus? 5 km from home to the CBD? You in Perth?

SteveA

"SteveA" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

CAT bus? 5 km from home to the CBD? You in Perth?

Doh...gave myself away there ;-) Home is Maylands, work is East Perth...

Cheers
David M

Davidm said:

Doh...gave myself away there ;-) Home is Maylands, work is East Perth...

Cheers
David M

Have a look at this link: Sustainable Transport Coalition - Cycling Initiatives

Davidm said:

Hi all

We're starting a green transport committee at work. I'm really just
interested in the cycling bit, and wondering what clever ideas people have
for encouraging cycling to work. It's a govt department so it can't be too
creative (heh) but seriously I have read before of all sorts of incentive
schemes....

I was thinking of the basic "upgrade end of trip facilities" as well as some
fundraising cycling events to raise awareness, but I feel if there must be
other clever strategies we could learn from...

TIA
David M

Take a ticket each time you cycle in, and free voucher for coffee/hot
after 5 tickets. I'll never cease to be amazed at what people will do
for a free coffee. And that way you get people thinking in terms of
multiple commutes rather than one off.

DaveB

In aus.bicycle on Mon, 21 Feb 2005 17:09:17 +0800

Davidm said:

I was thinking of the basic "upgrade end of trip facilities" as well as some
fundraising cycling events to raise awareness, but I feel if there must be
other clever strategies we could learn from...

How many people are really within cycling distance of work?

Compared to cycling distance to a train station say?

Isn't clear if this is incentives for your own dept, or statewide.

If statewide, then I think bicycle lockers at stations and other
transport hubs are a good idea.

I'm about to change jobs, going from a 50km commute to a 20km commute.

I don't think I'm going to cycle that (rather than motorcycle it) as I'm
a well known wimp. But cycling part of it might work if it got me a)
cheaper train fares for the rest of it, and b) there were good locker
facilities.

Or I'd cycle to the gym, leave the bike at the local station, and train
to work. Right now, if I want to go to the gym it's take the
motorcycle, do the workout, then ride the motorcycle to work. No point
in taking the train, can't leave the motorcycle near the gym all day.

Given how people seldom live close to work these days, cycle commuting
has to be about cycling part of the way and using public transport for
the rest. Very few folk will give up the car in order to cycle 20km,
but they might for 10km.

Sure, they might do the 20km later when they get used to the 10km but
they won't start with 20km.

Zebee

Davidm said:

"SteveA" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

CAT bus? 5 km from home to the CBD? You in Perth?

Doh...gave myself away there ;-) Home is Maylands, work is East Perth...

Cheers
David M

In one of the big silver buildings in East Perth? My commute is from Kensington to the Department of Health in East Perth.

SteveA

Zebee Johnstone said:

How many people are really within cycling distance of work?

How far are people willing to ride to work?
In particular, how far will 'normal', non-cycling mad people ride to
work? It seems 95% of people find it all too easy jumping into cars for
ANY distance.

Quoted message said:

I'm about to change jobs, going from a 50km commute to a 20km commute.

Are they round trip distances or one-way? Both would be more than our
car-mad friends would be willing to ride, I'd reckon..?

Quoted message said:

Given how people seldom live close to work these days, cycle commuting
has to be about cycling part of the way and using public transport for
the rest. Very few folk will give up the car in order to cycle 20km,
but they might for 10km.

Yeah. I use(d) Melbourne P.T. quite a bit and I couldn't tell you where
bike lockers are - if they even exist at most stations!
If people aren't willing to give up their cars for the train, why would
they do it for bike+train?

Thread on same topic:
http://www.bikeforums.net/archive/index.php/t-46306

Mileage allowance?
http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_roads/documents/page/dft_roads_504737-04.hcsp

Cycling to Work - UK perspective:
http://www.crazycolour.com/os/bike2work_12.shtml

(sorry if any of these have already been posted)

hippy

SteveA said:

In one of the big silver buildings in East Perth? My commute is from
Kensington to the Department of Health in East Perth.

The one called Galactica?

Theo