Denver’s e-bike voucher program that helps citizens pay for e-bikes, a component of the city’s carbon reduction plan, has proven extremely popular with residents.
Earlier this year, Denver’s effort to get residents to swap some motor vehicle trips for bike trips ran out of vouchers in less than 10 minutes after the program opened to online applications. In its third year, the program is generating impressive momentum to spur more adoption of bicycle transportation. The city estimates that the subsidies are helping to eliminate 170,000 vehicle miles traveled per week.
A key to this growth has been considerable investment in bike infrastructure. Over the past five years, the city added 137 miles of “high-comfort” bike lanes.
This year, it launched the Denver Mobility Incentive Program that includes grants to nonprofits and other organizations to install bike storage lockers, places to plug in, and e-bike libraries so that residents can borrow bikes at no cost. If rolled out nationwide, efforts to convert car trips to bike trips could yield significant carbon emissions reductions, according to Rocky Mountain Institute.
If the country’s 10 most populous cities shifted a quarter of all short vehicle trips to e-bike rides, they could save 4.2 million barrels of oil and 1.8 million metric tons of CO2 in one year, RMI says.
Related Stories
Urban Planning | Jul 21, 2017
Streets as storytellers: Defining places and connecting people
“In a city the street must be supreme. It is the first institution of the city. The street is a room by agreement, a community room, the walls of which belong to the donors, dedicated to the city for common use.” – Louis Kahn
Urban Planning | Jun 26, 2017
Convenience and community lead the suburban shift
As the demand for well-connected urban locales increases, so too has the cost of property and monthly rent; and as suburbs typically offer a bargain on both, more people are looking for a compromise.
Office Buildings | Jun 12, 2017
At 11.8 million-sf, LG Science Park is the largest new corporate research campus in the world
The project is currently 75% complete and on schedule to open in 2018.
Architects | May 26, 2017
Innovations in addressing homelessness
Parks departments and designers find new approaches to ameliorate homelessness.
Mixed-Use | May 24, 2017
Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects will develop mixed-use project on former site of Carlsberg Brewery
The 36,000-sm project will cover a city block and include a residential tower.
Mixed-Use | May 23, 2017
45-story tower planned for Miami Worldcenter
Pickard Chilton Architects will design the 600,000-sf 110 10th Street.
Movers+Shapers | May 8, 2017
Movers + Shapers: Charm City's lucky charm
Under Armour’s Kevin Plank launches a $5.5 billion redevelopment to transform Baltimore into “the coolest city in America.”
Urban Planning | Apr 24, 2017
No Small Plans hopes to inspire Chicago teens to design the city they want
Launched with a Kickstarter campaign, the Chicago Architecture Foundation aims to get No Small Plans into the hands of thousands of Chicago teens.
Urban Planning | Apr 20, 2017
Times Square renovation officially opens
The Snøhetta-designed project nearly doubles the size of public space at one of the most visited attractions in the U.S.
Architects | Apr 20, 2017
‘Gateways to Chinatown’ project seeks the creation of a new neighborhood landmark for NYC’s Chinatown
The winning team will have $900,000 to design and implement their proposal.