Bicycle Friendly Businesses: Helping Communities Flourish

Last week, the League of American Bicyclists announced 114 businesses, agencies and organizations that have joined the growing list of Bicycle Friendly Businesses (BFBs) around the country. The review process for BFB recognition includes a comprehensive online application, as well as surveys distributed to employees and local bike advocates, and concludes with a feedback report for each applicant.

In addition to covering important topics like bike parking, bicycle commuter incentives, and employee bike clubs, we ask every BFB applicant to “briefly describe the most positive outcome of your company’s support for bicycling.”

In honor of National Bike to Work Week this week, we’ll be sharing some of our favorite responses to this question from Spring 2018 BFB applicants.  Read on to find out why your company should support bicycling, too!

“Barge Design Solutions is invested in the health of its employees and its community. Supporting our cycling community is a natural result of the firm’s belief that healthy and happy employees are key to successful business. We are also invested in the community where we live and/or work. Seeing Nashville flourish and become more and more bike friendly is both a result of our transportation work and a benefit to everyone who lives here.” 

— Barge Design Solutions, Inc., Silver, 160 employees, Nashville, TN

Barge Design Solutions

“In supporting bicycling to work by our staff, as well as a focus in our conservation work, we see many benefits of supporting cycling. These range from simple heath and morale positives, to broader economic benefits of providing assistance to trail groups rejuvenating their communities with recreational and commuter trail developments.” 

— Pennsylvania Environmental Council, Bronze BFB, 8 employees, Pittsburgh, PA

“Hosting and supporting events that are overflowing with bikes brings an increased level of awareness to cycling in Fergus Falls. Having a business downtown that is frequently visited by people on bikes makes cycling very visible in our community. There is a privately owned alley next to Union Pizza & Brewing that we have closed temporarily on occasion to accommodate large numbers of bikes at events that we host. Being located on one of the busiest streets in our community, this of course brings even more visibility to cycling in Fergus Falls.” 

— Union Pizza & Brewing Co., Silver BFB, 10 employees, Fergus Falls, MN

Union Pizza & Brewing Co.

“The Springfield YMCA is proud to promote bike safety in Springfield. The hosting of our Kids Triathlon has been a very rewarding and fulfilling experience for all of us at the YMCA. The promotion of biking as a sport as well as the advancement of bicycle safety has been one of the most rewarding things we have done this year to support bicycling.” 

— Springfield YMCA, Bronze BFB, 25 employees, Springfield, IL

“With local events like Tulsa Tough right next to our office and bicycle friendly amenities our company is in a great position to promote bicycling. The bicycle friendly business application is really a starting point to kick start this effort.” 

— Wallace Engineering, Honorable Mention, 100 employees, Tulsa, OK

Learn how the Bicycle Friendly Business program can help your business or organization to become more bicycle-friendly at https://bikeleague.org/business. For #BiketoWorkWeek, we’re offering 20% off the BFB application fee. Submissions must be finalized by Sunday night (5/20 at midnight ET). Use the discount code BTWW2018. Apply at apply.bikeleague.org. 

<Tuesday’s BFB Blog> <Thursday’s BFB blog>