Employers Is your business bicycle friendly?
Why is it important to encourage employees to commute by bike?

1. Commuting Costs

  • It costs about $3000 a year to own, operate and maintain a motor vehicle
  • Employees demand higher wages and benefits to compensate for commuting costs

2. Health Hazards

  • Exposure to traffic congestion increases heart rate, blood pressure, and negative moods
  • Long, arduous commutes to work, air pollustion and a sedentary lifestyle are unhealthy

3. The Bottom Line

  • Supporting bike commuting is less expensive than an in-office fitness facility
  • Employers who appreciate workers’ personal needs have less employee turnover
  • Healthier employees can reduce health insurance costs; check with your carrier

4. Better Employees

  • Employees will see commuting as personal time to relax instead of increasing stress
  • Fit employees are more alert, more productive, perform better and more efficiently
  • Bike commuting can be substituted for the gym, saving employees personal time
How can employers help?

1. Offer Bike Facilities

  • Showers and private changing rooms are ideal
  • Arrange for shower use at a local health club or Bike Center for your employees
  • Hanging space or a standing wardrobe will provide ample storage for work clothes

2. Offer Paring and Storage

  • Indoor, secure bike parking near changing rooms on the ground floor is idea
  • For bike parking outdoors, use bike lockers or covered bike racks
  • Bike parking should be accessible, visible and secure
  • Use the Bike Center

3. Assist with Route Coordination

  • Appoint a bike commuting coordinator to procure local bike route maps
  • Help employees plan routes to work using low-traffic but direct roads and paths
  • Encourage cyclist education among employees; educated riders are safe riders

4. Offer Financial Incentives

  • Partner with a local bike shop to offer employee discounts or maintenance clinics
  • Offer subsidies for bike commuters who don't use car parking spaces
  • Provide lunch for bike commuters; offer extra vacation time for daily bike commuters

5. Promote It!

  • Form a company bicycle club or race team; increase your own exposure locally
  • Allow bike commuters to dress more casually at work; organize a lunchtime race
  • Ask the local bike shop to showcase new bike models during lunch

6. Do Outreach

  • Get local news media to cover your events
  • Offer tips on how to start a bike commuting program to other local businesses
  • Encourage employees to help co-workers make the switch to bike commuting





Bicycle Commuter Act

On January 1, 2009, the qualified bicycle commuting reimbursement was added to the list of qualified transportation fringe benefits covered in section 132 (f) of the Internal Revenue Service Code. The Bicycle Commuter Act is a simple, equitable solution to put cyclists on the same footing as people who receive qualified transportation benefits for taking transit or driving (or parking, actually) their cars to and from work. Any employer, if they chose to do so, may provide a reimbursement of up to $20 per month for reasonable expenses incurred by the employee in conjunction with their commute to work by bike. Please note, that unlike the other qualified transportation fringe benefits, a qualified bicycle commuting reimbursement benefit cannot be funded through employee pre-tax income, nor can an employee receive both the transit and bicycle QTF in the same month.

Special recognition and Thanks to The League of American Bicyclists for Providing This Information http://www.bikeleague.org/

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