Publication Detail

Examining the Effects of a Bike and E-Bike Lending Program on Commuting Behavior

UCD-ITS-RP-22-12

Journal Article

BicyclingPlus Research Collaborative

Suggested Citation:
Fitch-Polse, Dillon T., Zeyu Gao, Lucy Noble, Terry Mac (2022)

Examining the Effects of a Bike and E-Bike Lending Program on Commuting Behavior

. Mineta Transportation Institute Publications (2051)

In 2015, Google added a new transportation demand management (TDM) program to increase bike commuting to their two main campuses in Mountain View and Sunnyvale, California. An initial survey of employees indicated that bike ownership and worry about maintenance were primary bicycling barriers. With this information, Google began a program that loaned high-quality electric-assisted and conventional bicycles for a period of six months at no cost to interested employees. This research evaluates the effectiveness of the program at changing travel behavior to the corporate campuses by using self-reported and smartphone-integrated travel data. The lending program at Google represents one of, if not the largest, employer-sponsored bike and e-bike lending program in North America with over 1,000 bikes in its inventory. Thus, the evaluation of this program is a critical first step for understanding how bike lending can influence travel behavior in North American suburban contexts.

Key words: Transportation demand management, Bicycling, bike lending, e-bike, commute behavior