As bicycling grows in KC, getting customers and employees on bikes brings returns.
Even in our car-centric region, the automobile isn’t the only way to get around. More and more Kansas Citians are turning to bicycles — for recreation and for getting from A to B. Between 2011 and 2012, commuting by bicycle increased 42 percent in the Kansas City region, according the U.S. Census Bureau.
You might have heard about the health benefits or maybe the way riding a bike helps combat air pollution. However, the rise in bicycle commuting locally is important for another reason: It’s great for business.
The Dollars and Sense of Bicycles
Bikes bring benefits to small businesses in several ways. For retailers, studies show that people shopping by bike spend more money overall than those who drive. For many small businesses, bicycles provide an alternative to potentially pricey parking arrangements (for the business and for customers).
The health benefits of cycling can also boost your bottom line by keeping employees healthy. Besides reducing risk of diseases like obesity and diabetes, bicycling helps maintain day-to-day health, and employees who bike to work will miss on average one fewer day of work per year, according to Dutch researchers. And the exercise from bicycling and other physical activity is shown to enhance alertness and productivity once employees arrive at work.
You can encourage your employees to ride to work or to ride during lunch by making one or two bikes available for employee use.
Attracting Cyclists to Your Business
A great way to encourage bicycle traffic to and from your business is to install bike parking. A well-placed, quality bike rack at your business is not only more convenient for the customer or employee—it’s a meaningful, visible sign that they are welcome to show up on a bike. Don’t worry about cyclists not having a way to carry home purchases—there are plenty of cargo carrying options!
Efforts like installing a bike rack are most effective when made part of a wider strategy encouraging cycling to your business. Other measures can include:
- A discount for customers who ride their bike to your retail space (they aren’t taking up a valuable parking space after all!).
- A bicycle-friendly business certification—the most recognized is offered by the League of American Bicyclists. This is not only another sign of support for cyclists, you’ll get technical support to maximize the bike-friendliness of your business
Bicycling benefits more businesses when an entire city or region encourages bicycling. You, as part of Kansas City’s vital community of entrepreneurs, can help convince local leaders that improvements like more bike lanes don’t just provide another way to get around—they’re great for business too.