Partnership awards $375,000 to make bike share more equitable

Media Contact:Lauren Fallertlfallert@verdepr.com970-259-3555   

Boulder, CO (June 1, 2015) — In a collaboration between the City of Philadelphia, the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, the PeopleForBikes Foundation and the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO), the Better Bike Share Partnership has awarded nearly $375,000 in grants to recipients across the country working to make bike share programs more equitable. The Better Bike Share Partnership is funded by the JPB Foundation to increase access to and use of bike share in underserved communities.

This round of grants is the first in $900,000 of funding PeopleForBikes will administer over three years as part of the Partnership. “Most cities and bike share operators want to find ways to make bike share an appealing and accessible option for more people in their communities,” said Zoe Kircos, Grant Manager at PeopleForBikes. “These grants allow cities, systems, and non-profit partners to test interventions and help us develop best practices for encouraging more people to use bike share.”

“We’re excited that this funding will enable six cities to be innovators in this field,” said Carniesha Kwashie, Grant Manager with the City of Philadelphia’s Mayor’s Office of Transportation and Utilities and the Better Bike Share Partnership administrator. “Lessons learned from their experiences will guide future efforts to enhance the capacity of bike share to improve how all people move throughout their communities.”

The following projects have received funding:

Austin Bike Share Equity Project: $50,000

Austin, TX

Austin B-cycle will use this grant award to address barriers of cost, safety, comfort with bicycling, and language through a bilingual outreach and education campaign along with subsidized membership and cash payment options. A report with best practices on implementing a fully bilingual bike share system is one key deliverable of this project.

Boston Bikes Hubway Equity Project: $51,760

Boston, MA

Boston Bikes will build on their successful membership subsidy program and Prescribe-a-Bike collaboration with the Boston Medical Center to reach more diverse city residents with the help of this grant funding. Expansion of these two programs will join with plans to understand, reinforce and replicate the system’s best referral sources, align with other Boston Bikes programs, and develop more effective peer marketing tools through storytelling.

Building Up Bike Share in Bedford Stuyvesant: $75,000

Brooklyn, NY

The Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation (Restoration) will capitalize on Citi Bike’s addition of 26 stations to their neighborhood with several targeted interventions to increase use. Restoration will focus their grant funding on tailored community outreach, education about riding bicycles and using bike share, membership promotion campaigns, and integration with other community services to introduce more Bedford Stuyvesant residents to bike share.

Capital Bikeshare Outreach Resources for Community Organizations: $25,000

Washington, DC

The District of Columbia’s Department of Transportation (DOT) will strengthen and expand its network of local community service organizations as ambassadors for Capital Bikeshare with this grant award. In addition to initiating partnerships and developing best practices based on previous community partner experiences, the DOT will also create resources including a training curriculum and manual, multi-lingual demonstration video on how to use bike share, new member kits, and an ambassador network that links and supports community partners.

Charlotte B-cycle Free Wheelin’ Fridays: $20,000

Charlotte, NC

Charlotte B-cycle is working with an extensive roster of community partners to help people from neighborhoods across the city try using bike share for their Friday morning commutes. This targeted program will use experienced riders, incentives, and origination points in communities with less bike share use to boost ridership.

Divvy for Everyone: $75,000

Chicago, IL

The Chicago Department of Transportation (DOT) is using their award and match funding from BlueCross BlueShield of Illinois to implement a citywide program of subsidized memberships and facilitated enrollment through the Local Initiatives Support Coalition (LISC) - Centers for Working Families. Chicago DOT will also partner with Slow Roll Chicago on targeted outreach, education and engagement in the Southside neighborhood of Bronzeville along with general outreach and engagement citywide.

Equity Outcomes and Potential for Better Bike Share: $74,986

Portland, OR

Researchers at Portland State University will collect and examine data such as perceptions of bike share, barriers to use, success of specific interventions to increase use, and the impact of station siting decisions in Philadelphia’s Indego Bike Share System. The key deliverable is a report that will help new and existing bike share systems identify and implement interventions that will help them reach and engage more riders.

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