The aim of the Bike Now research project was to explore specific actions that could be undertaken in the context of a workplace to encourage people to take up (and continue) cycling to work. The actions included: bike mentoring/buddying; establishing bike buses; providing cycle skills training; creating secure parking at the workplace; and providing a cycle fleet at the workplace for travel during working hours, among others. The Bike Now project involved approximately 40 workplaces in Auckland, Wellington, Nelson, and Blenheim, New Zealand for a 12 month period in 2007 and 2008. This paper reports on the strengths and weaknesses of the process used; the effectiveness of the initiatives implemented; and provides some guidance for future programs to encourage cycle commuting. While the presence of Bike Now in the workplace served to increase awareness of cycling, and encouraged some people in our self selected sample to commence cycle commuting, none of the initiatives on their own stood out as contributing to this success. (a).
Samenvatting