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Real Commuter Gamification in the Tour de Redmond

Washington state’s Greater Redmond Transportation Management Association (GRTMA) has been running an annual bike-focused commuter challenge since 2006. The challenge, cleverly called the “Tour de Redmond“, is designed to recognize commuters who regularly bike to work, and to introduce drivers to cycling with the hope of inspiring long-term behavior change. RideAmigos first supported the Tour de Redmond in 2012, when the organizers used our cloud-based platform to manage registration and run the challenge. We can’t think of a better way to start and end a summer workday than biking through beautiful Redmond, Washington. We’re proud to be powering the Tour de Redmond again this year as an official sponsor of the event.

RideAmigos facilitated the program’s successful transition to a true gamification-based commuter engagement strategy. Participants can view their rankings on a live leaderboard and instantly compare themselves and their team to other riders. The commuter challenge features make it easy for riders to track their progress toward the program’s prizes, all while engaging their competitive spirits.

For program organizers, a commuter management platform makes it easy to generate reports, maps, and visualizations. These features give GRTMA officials useful and actionable insights into commuter behaviors during the challenge, allowing them to make ongoing evaluations about the city’s cycling infrastructure while continuing to find new ways to encourage community members to adopt cycling as a long-term commuting solution.

After the first year of working with RideAmigos, GRTMA organizers called it the “smoothest we have ever had in the seven-year history of the competition.” They were also happy to report that using RideAmigos cloud-based platform “saved us as much as a hundred labor hours.”

The commuters in Redmond also posted some impressive results that year:

  • 583 active riders across 64 teams
  • Over 90,000 miles biked
  • Over 54 million calories burned
  • $17,000 of gas money saved
  • 45 tons of greenhouse gas emissions avoided

The Tour de Redmond has continued to build on that success. The 2018 challenge just kicked off at the beginning of June and RideAmigos is proud to be a part of it again this year. We’re looking forward to seeing this year’s results!

If you’d like to learn more about what our platform and programs can do for you, or if you are looking for advice on jump-starting your own commuter challenges, get started here.

Pro Tips for Safer City Cycling

May is National Bike Month, which means you’re likely to see a sharp uptick in the number of cyclists on the road. If you’re planning to take part in the festivities, it’s essential that you brush up on your best practices for city cycling safety. This is especially true if you aren’t an experienced rider, or if you’re planning to hit the road on two wheels for the first time in a while.

First, and most importantly, make sure you have the right safety gear. A sturdy helmet designed specifically for cycling is a must-have. If you’re going to be riding during the pre-dawn or post-dusk hours, you should also wear a brightly colored, reflective safety vest over your clothing. Yellow and orange are highly visible colors, and are recommended.

Cars are legally obligated to pass you at a safe distance, often at least 3 feet, but the unfortunate reality is that drivers don’t always adhere to that requirement. To make things safer for you, follow these tips:

  • Be assertive without putting yourself at risk; don’t ride too close to the curb or parked cars, but don’t “boss your lane” unless it’s necessary for safety reasons
  • Actively scan the road in all directions, and anticipate unfolding traffic situations before they happen
  • Always ride defensively; motorists have tons of steel to protect them in the event of an accident, but you don’t
  • Avoid boxing yourself in, and if you don’t have a clear escape route in a particular road situation, reduce your speed dramatically
  • Be especially cautious around large vehicles – these drivers might have a more difficult time seeing you

City cycling safety experts also stress the importance of pre-planning your route. Take as many streets with dedicated or protected bike lanes as possible, and avoid major traffic corridors with high vehicle volumes to the greatest possible degree. If it’s possible to take a side street instead of a main road, do it.

Finally, always try to make eye contact with the drivers of turning vehicles as you approach them. This is the only way you can be sure that drivers have seen you. Also, to that end, don’t gamble on yellow lights. Turning drivers will be looking to clear the intersection before the light turns red, and you want to avoid entering the intersection after they’ve already committed to completing their turn.

Learn more about how to get the most out of National Bike Month!

 

How to Be a More Bike Friendly Employer

With National Bike Month well underway, businesses across the country are seeing a surge in the number of employees who are interested in riding to work instead of driving. In years past, National Bike Month has prompted many employee transportation coordinators to consider how they can turn their organization into a more bike friendly employer. If you’re in that situation, there are many ways you get started in supporting active commuting in your workplace.

Here are four popular ideas:

Secure bike storage

Well-placed bike racks offer a low-cost way to encourage more people to ride to work rather than drive. To make the most of your investment, it’s best to place the bike storage area somewhere accessible only to employees, or at least somewhere that isn’t highly visible to passersby and the general public.

Make sure your racks allow for the easy and secure placement of bike locks, and that your racks are placed to shield bikes from rain and snow. Bike racks generally come in two varieties: freestanding racks that can be bolted down to durable surfaces and in-ground racks that are mounted in poured concrete.

If you’re looking to really impress your bicycle commuters, consider providing covered bike storage that is also protected from sun and rain, or even indoor bike storage for the highest level of convenience and security.

On-site showers and lockers

Biking delivers a healthy workout, especially for commuters who ride a long way. Nobody wants to spend their work day in sweaty clothes, and the prospect of doing so discourages a lot of would-be cyclists from ditching their cars.

The solution? Provide on-site showers and lockers for employees who want to embrace active commuting. That way, they can bring a change of clothes, shower when they arrive, and be fresh as a daisy when the work day begins.

Guaranteed ride home programs

A bike friendly employer also recognizes that emergencies and unexpected situations happen. If a commuter bikes to work, what do they do if the weather turns nasty or they suddenly have to get somewhere faster than their bike can carry them? Such anxieties are often cited as reasons commuters choose to drive instead of biking.

Guaranteed ride home programs are a great way to solve this problem, as they provide emergency rides for employees who use alternative modes of commuting. Typically commuters are offered a free ride home a specified number of times per year if an emergency situation arises. Rides are provided via vouchers, Uber or Lyft codes, or through a reimbursement system.

Ongoing Incentive Programs

Bike to Work Challenges are a great way to get commuters to try out a new way of commuting. However, ongoing bike-related incentives are important to keep them going. Options for incentive programs are as diverse as your imagination and resources, so check out these suggestions for bike-related incentives like point programs, raffles, and even earn-a-bike programs.

Running such bike friendly commuter programs can be complex and tedious unless you’re using commuter management software like RideAmigos. Contact us today to learn how we can help your organization become a bike friendly employer!

Challenge Your Employees for Bike Month 2018

National Bike Month, an annual tradition since 1956, is coming up in May. Sponsored nationally by the League of American Bicyclists, the National Bike Month event is designed to promote the many health and environmental benefits of cycling.

Each year, employers play a major role in National Bike Month’s success. Thousands of employers across the country hold friendly competitions and challenges designed to get their commuters actively participating. If you’re thinking of hosting a National Bike Month commuting challenge this year, we have a few tips that can help you encourage more robust participation rates.

Create Team-Based Competitions with Attractive Prizes

This go-to strategy is a surefire way to get the whole company engaged. Divide your commuter base up into teams, in whatever way works. For example, you could draw names at random, allow teams to self-select, or have teams for each department (accounting, human resources, etc.). Then, track team-based standings based on the number of bike commutes logged, or the number of miles biked, or both! Offer a prize to the team that wins the competition at the end of the month — something that will motivate people to keep taking part.

Add Smaller Weekly Prizes for Ongoing Engagement

It can be tough to keep people engaged if one team pulls way ahead in the standings, or if luck of the draw leaves another team with little hope of winning the month-long challenge. To encourage continued participation, offer smaller weekly prizes to teams or individuals that log the most trips or miles in each given week.

Run Raffles to Encourage Everyone

A similar strategy that also works well is to run a raffle draw for smaller prizes, giving participants one entry per logged bike commute. The drawings can be held weekly, giving everyone an incentive to participate at least a little bit. Of course, this strategy also rewards those who cycle frequently with more chances to win the draw, which is also a great motivator.

As always, the RideAmigos team is here to help with tools and tips to increase the reach and impact of your commuter programs, during National Bike Month and throughout the year. Please get in touch if we can help.

 

Meet the Bike Commuters of RideAmigos

We don’t just help others with bike commuting, we practice it ourselves!

Over the course of Bike Month 2017, many members of the RideAmigos team took to two wheels and biked their way to their respective offices across the country. Some walked, others took transit, and as always we all tried to make solo driving our last choice, not our first. 100% of our Roanoke, VA office and 80% of our Bloomington, IN office bike commuted during May, and one of our executives made the decision to sell his car and invest in an e-bike!

 

As we wrap-up our Bike Month celebrations, we thought we’d highlight a few of our Amigos and their commuting efforts this month:

Corey Tucker – Partner Success Manager
Roanoke, VA

For the first time in a long time I live more than five miles from work, and instead of biking every day, I drive into the office a couple of days a week.  For bike to work month I wanted to make an effort to ride in, but had to figure out the best way to fit a 50 mile, one-way journey into my day.  Without enough light in the day to bike both ways, my fellow amigo, Matt McKimmy…who lives very close to the office, was generous enough to allow me to leave my car overnight so I could commute home one day, and back to the office the next.  One way, each day, on the bike.  Even with the best of intentions I was unable to find two consecutive days where I could sacrifice three hours to the bicycle until the last week of the month…and then it started raining.  Unwilling to give up on the dream I hopped on my bike one afternoon for a rainy 50 mile slog home…and again the next morning for a rainy 50 mile slog back to the office.  Luckily there was tasty hot chocolate waiting for me at the end.

Mark Stosberg – Senior Systems Engineer
Bloomington, IN

My Xtracycle cargo bike is convenient for hauling extra food and clothing supplies on Mondays and Tuesdays to support my run commutes on Tuesdays and Thursdays where I try to have a lighter load. On Wednesdays I telecommute and use the time saved commuting to run a mile to the elementary school with my kids instead of putting them on the bus. They love it and asked to keep a weekly run over the summer break.

By trading two bike commuting days per week for run commutes, I was able to find time to train for my first marathon two years ago. Now I’ve lost 30 pounds and placed first in my age group in a trail marathon this month. Although my age has only gone up, I’m in perhaps the best shape I’ve been in my life and most of my training miles come from active transportation.

Jeff Jackson – Marketing Manager
Roanoke, VA

I am not a cyclist. I rode a bike when I was a kid and very limited as an adult. For the month of May I was challenged to commute to work on a bike and I will admit I was not looking forward to the experience. The thought of adding time to my commute every day, being sweaty, and the risks of getting hit by a car or just not being aware and somehow hurting myself made me want to avoid this challenge altogether.

Now that the month is over, reflecting on my experience and I must say that my expectations were completely wrong. Since May first I have ridden on greenways, open roads all over the city, gone mountain biking on several trails and I have loved almost every ride. In the past month I have tried five different types of bikes, developed new friendships, seen more of the city, lost weight, improved my cardio, and rekindled a childhood-like joy that I had forgotten about.

I highly recommend everyone to try this for one month! The concerns that held me back were simply fears that weren’t true. The time I added to my commute was minimal, during the hottest days I never felt sweaty and I found that people were very respectful while I was on the road.

Matt McKimmy – Systems and Operations Manager
Roanoke, VA

In addition to biking and walking my 3-block commute for the entire month, I’ve also been actively involved in our local RideSolutions Ride Smart Challenge. While I’ve long been a bike commuter, this was my first time participating in a local challenge like this and contributing to the Sweaty Pedalers team victory was tremendous fun! In order to help encourage others to participate in bike month festivities my wife and I loaned a couple of our extra bikes to friends, which meant that most of the 70+ transportation miles I logged this month were on my super-capable (but also heavy) Yuba Mundo long-tail cargo bike.

Since I moved into the city in April, this bike month challenge was a great way to expedite learning the best bike routes around town, making new friends, and figuring out ways that I might be able to help others to see bikes as a great form of transportation. I have no doubt that I’ll bike more throughout the summer because of all the excitement and encouragement that were part of bike month.

Bike Month 2017 Collage

 

We hope all our partners and friends had great success with their Bike Month initiatives. If you’re looking for the perfect platform for running future bike challenges, bike-to-work incentive programs, and events, look no further than RideAmigos. We make it easy for people to shift away from solo driving and toward smarter, healthier commute options like biking, walking, carpooling, and more.

Find out how we can help make your Bike Month 2018 programs even more successful than this year’s – get started with RideAmigos today!

Health Benefits of Bike Commuting

Leaving your car at home is definitely good for your mind, but it’s even better for your body.

This past April, researchers published a new study in the British Medical Journal that’s attracted a lot of attention in the transportation demand management space. The study, which was carried out by scientists in the United Kingdom, compared the relative health benefits of four common modes of commuting: driving, public transportation, walking, and cycling. Their conclusion? Cycling is, by a significant margin, the healthiest option.

The study’s key finding is that when practiced on a daily basis, pedal power reduces an individual’s risk of dying, from any disease or cause, by an amazing 41 percent. Researchers expected that cycling would prove to be the healthiest mode of transportation, given that it is the highest-intensity commuting option included in the study. However, even these seasoned scientists were surprised to learn just how dramatically it can improve a person’s physical health.

This particular study followed over 263,000 participants between the ages of 40 and 69 over a five-year period. Its methodology included controls to correct for lifestyle factors, age disparities, socioeconomic imbalances, and other important variables. The study also included a mixed-mode option, in which active forms of commuting, such as cycling and walking, were combined with inactive transportation options, such as public transit and driving. The conclusive trend held up even in this regard, with study participants who included biking as part of a mixed-mode commuting strategy showing a 24 percent decrease in mortality risk.

So what makes biking so beneficial? Study participants who biked to work generally had longer distances to cover than those who walked, giving them a longer and more intensive regular workout.

If you’re looking to promote an alternative to solo driving, biking is a great place to start. In addition, studies have also shown that shared modes of transportation, such as carpooling and public transportation, are also associated with both mental and physical health benefits. There’s room for a complete range of options in any complete commuter management strategy.

Thinking of this from an employer’s perspective, it’s worth noting that encouraging people to commute by bike can also benefit an organization’s bottom line due to such health benefits. That means biking to work is a win-win for both commuters themselves and the companies they work for! Which is a great reason to promote cycling both during Bike to Work month and year-round.

Bike Month Collaboration in the RideAmigos Academy

Be inspired by bike month collaboration success stories

May is National Bike Month, and RideAmigos is marking the occasion by promoting bike month collaboration efforts with our partner organizations. Together, we have helped create successful and innovative programs that we hope will inspire others to join in the fun.

National Bike Month Case Study: San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara County

SLOCOG / SBCAG Logos

Our National Bike Month collaboration case study comes from California, where the San Luis Obispo Council of Governments and the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments teamed up to launch an “All Star Challenge” in 2017.

The challenge centers on a friendly competition between neighboring companies and organizations, who are facing off to see which team can log the most bike commutes during National Bike Month. The competition includes:

  • Cal Poly State University vs. UC Santa Barbara
  • MINDBODY vs. Yardi Systems
  • California DOT (District 5) vs. RightScale
  • SRAM vs. Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition

Unlike other challenges that simply count trips or miles, this challenge pits teams from organizations of similar sizes head-to-head to see which can motivate the highest percentage of employees to swap their cars for pedal power. (Learn more at the Rideshare.org All Star Challenge site.)

Both government councils use the RideAmigos transportation demand management platform to help shift commuter behavior . The platform has proven to be an essential tool during the development and launch of the 2017 All Stars Challenge. Its comprehensive suite of trip logging, communication, and administration features have made this unique cross-county All Stars Challenge a far easier and more manageable task. Since both municipalities already used RideAmigos, which natively supports such “normalized” percentage-based challenges, setting up and running the challenge was as easy as deciding the teams, setting up the system, and displaying the results. 

The San Luis Obispo Council of Governments has been an early adopter of the RideAmigos Academy Coffee Talk X initiative, which grew out of the popular Coffee Talk webinar series. In the ramp-up to the challenge, SLOCOG and SBCAG joined forces for several Coffee Talk X events to prepare their teams. Coffee Talk X enables RideAmigos partner organizations to draw ideas and foster direct connections with the employers and commuters they represent, helping them build sustainable commuting strategies that generate higher levels of participation. 

Beyond free participation in Coffee Talks, all RideAmigos platform administrators enjoy full access to the RideAmigos Academy. The Academy takes a community-focused approach to providing help, insights, ideas, and collaboration opportunities to those who want to play a leading role in the move toward sustainable commuting.

The RideAmigos team is all about collaboration, and we recognize that people have the power to create incredibly positive changes when they work together. To that end, we’d like to invite you to join our thriving and growing community of collaborators. Check out the numerous ways to get started with RideAmigos.

Incentives for Bike Commuting

Organizations that offer bike commuting incentives have a better track record of getting people to make the switch

A lot of people are theoretically open to making the switch to bicycle commuting, yet hesitate to actually make the jump or don’t stick with it for the long term. It’s a problem that many businesses and organizations have faced when trying to promote active, healthier and more ecologically responsible commuting alternatives.

One constant that’s emerged from creative thinking and a great deal of trial and error is that people are more likely to make the switch if you give them a compelling reason to do it. This strategy of providing bike commuting incentives can take many forms:

Competitive challenges

Some people just need to have their competitive spirit awakened, and creating a friendly but competitive bike challenge program is often enough to get commuters excited. Individuals and teams can vie to log the greatest number of bicycle commutes or the greatest total distance covered over a set period of time, with winners becoming eligible for prizes (and bragging rights!).

Points programs

Reward would-be drivers every time they commute by bike instead by awarding points for each vehicle commute saved. After reaching a certain threshold, the points can then be redeemed for prizes or other perks that might motivate your team members.

Raffles

This approach is similar to points programs, but instead of awarding points, they give commuters an entry in a prize draw for each bicycle commute they log. The bigger the prize, the more enthusiastic people will be.

Earn-a-bike initiatives

Numerous organizations have used this approach to great success. Earn-a-bike programs allow commuters to effectively trade their parking privileges for a bike. Check the Sonos earn-a-bike program for a great example of a strategy that worked very well.

If you need ideas for raffle, points program and competitive challenge prizes, here are some popular options:

  • Bikes or bike accessories (locks, helmets, reflective jerseys, etc.)
  • Vouchers or gift cards redeemable at local bike shops
  • Physical or digital-download gift cards to local malls, restaurants, or retailers
  • Event tickets (sports, movies, etc.)
  • Extra paid time off
  • Cash bonuses
  • Transit passes
  • Rideshare credits to services like Uber and Lyft

The RideAmigos team has great insights to share if you’re looking to create a bike commuting incentives program, and the RideAmigos platform is the ideal tool for shifting commuter behavior. Get started with RideAmigos today to learn more.

Shift your commuter programs into high gear for bike month

Make an impact with your National Bike Month commuting program.

Every year since 1956, May has been designated as National Bike Month. Sponsored by the League of American Bicyclists, National Bike Month offers businesses and communities a wealth of ways to encourage active, sustainable commuting alternatives.

National Bike Month is a great opportunity to improve health and fitness, reduce traffic congestion and pollution, and discover new ways of looking at your community. Bike-to-work programs enable businesses and organizations to get more people involved, and provide a perfect opportunity to encourage commuters to make a long-term transition to pedal power.

Building a successful bike-to-work program means getting as many people involved as possible. Here are a few winning tips to help you drum up robust participation rates for your smart commute challenges and events:

Start with a survey

When designing your bike to work challenge, the best place to start is with a survey. This will help you generate information-based insights into important factors like the experience level of riders, how far people will be commuting, and what routes they will be following.

From there, you can divide the respondents into groups that reflect their enthusiasm and experience level. This allows you to focus segmented promotional efforts on specific groups of people. Use strategic insights to help turn people with middling levels of interest into enthusiastic participants who can’t wait to get started. After all, promotional efforts are best directed at those who are on the fence instead of those who are already jumping at the bit to take part.

Create incentives

Gamification incentives, like prizes and rewards programs, give participants an extra bit of motivation to get involved in your bike to work challenge. Playing for points or pride can work in the short term, but commuter challenges work best when they also encourage people to make better use of smart commuting alternatives over the long run.

To that end, remember that offering rewards and prizes for continuing to commute by bike is a surefire way to get people to commit to behavior change over the long haul. You can also use short-term challenges as test runs for longer-term or permanent programs to see what works, what connects with participants, and where you need to improve your strategy.

Promote your program strategically

When you get around to launching your promotional campaign, build in time to analyze the results. Instead of making an all-in push from the get-go, leave wiggle room that allows you to make adjustments. This will help you bring more people into the fold, ultimately supporting a more successful program.

You can also learn more from our collaboration with Google on creating a strong and successful bike-to-work initiative.

Pair inexperienced riders with “bike buddies”

Bikepooling and “bike buddy” programs are effective options for reaching people who would like to bike to work but don’t feel comfortable riding alone. These programs match new riders with experienced bike commuters who can show new biking enthusiasts the ropes and help them navigate city traffic safely and confidently.

An added benefit of the “bike buddy” approach is that it helps improve workplace collegiality and foster increased cooperation among your company’s commuter base. People can form friendships and expand their professional networks through the connections they make by taking part in smart commute challenges and events.

Expanding beyond the challenge: Emerging ideas for driving long-term mode shift

Encouraging long-term behavior change is challenging, but one strategy that’s catching on is the idea of trading parking permits for bicycles. Organizations and institutions in both the public and private sectors have already leveraged this strategy to great success, and it provides a powerful incentive that reduces parking demand, keeps parking costs in check, and helps build a healthier, happier community.

Consider it as a potential end goal of your bike to work challenge!

Power your commuter challenges and incentive programs with RideAmigos

The RideAmigos software platform has everything you’ll need to design, promote, manage, and administer bike to month challenges and other commuter programs. Our industry-leading solution supports survey distribution, data analysis tools, incentive tracking, statistical management, and a complete range of other features for administrators and commuters alike.

To learn more, get started with RideAmgios today!

5 New Year’s Resolutions for Smart Commuter Management

Happy New Year! There’s no better time to create goals that will have a beneficial impact on your organization and the community at large than at the start of another trip around the sun. Here are five great ways you can make smart commuter management a priority in 2017.

#1: Collect More Information

The essential first step in generating behavior change is understanding the commuting habits of your organization’s members. Specifically, there are four key things you need to know:

  • What are the primary mode(s) of transportation currently in use among members?
  • How aware are members of the transportation benefits you currently offer?
  • What is the single most important consideration for members when choosing a way to get to work? Time? Cost? Something else?
  • What benefits or incentives would get members to try out an alternative mode of commuting?

Finding answers to these questions through commuter surveys will help you create a transportation program that’s got a much better chance of success.

#2: Experiment with Incentives

Providing incentives for leaving single-occupancy vehicles behind is a proven way to vastly increase program participation rates. Incentive programs come in many forms, with popular options including:

  • Pre-tax reimbursements for employees who use qualified modes of transportation
  • Preferred or lower-cost parking for carpool drivers
  • Parking cash-out programs that offer monthly payments to employees who give up their parking spots
  • Friendly individual- or team-oriented in-house competitions, with prizes for the winners who log the most miles or make the most trips using qualified modes of travel

Plan some experiments to try during 2017 and see which strategies best engage your commuters!

#3: Promote Transit as an Alternative to Solo Driving

Public transit is a great way for employees to save money, reduce congestion and pollution, and reduce wear and tear on their vehicles. Try offering partially or fully subsidized local transit passes and watch ridership soar.

#4: Participate in Bike to Work Week

Every spring, Bike to Work Week becomes a national initiative that helps get people moving and encourages greater numbers of commuters to make a permanent switch. Join in a Bike to Work Week being planned for your city or region, or if there’s not one in the works – help make it happen!

#5: Adopt a Comprehensive Commuter Management Tool

Commuters and administrators alike can benefit from a comprehensive platform like RideAmigos. Easily implement advanced carpool matching, distribute surveys, create networks and challenges, launch incentive programs, track results, and much more!

Learn More About Commuter Management Platforms