Bike Share: Healthy Tech Right Outside Your Door

Bike Share: Healthy Tech Right Outside Your Door

Measure What You Want to Manage Reading Bike Share: Healthy Tech Right Outside Your Door 2 minutes Next Measure What You Want to Manage

Do you have a bike sharing service where you live?

Washington DC, my home, has one of the first bike sharing services in the country. In its ten-year history, riders have taken more than 27 million trips and ridden 150 million miles. Today there are 600 stations, 5K bikes, and 26K members.

A few years ago, when a rack of red bikes appeared on my street, I admit I was concerned about giving up parking spaces to accommodate them. But biking is so much better for the environment--and for our health and fitness--than driving!

Now, when the weather’s nice, I use it pretty often, mostly for local trips. I love that I can park at bike stations all around town while I run errands, and don’t have to worry about locking my own bike, or parking my car. During the pandemic, my family has used bike share to get outside and get some exercise in a fun yet socially-distant way.

bike share healthy tech right outside your door bike image
Image credit: Capital Bikeshare
DC’s Capital Bikeshare (the photo on the left is from their site) uses technology in a few ways that I think are cool. Their app lets you see where available bikes and docking stations are located, and report when repairs are needed. You can also see a history of your own trips and their duration. People can even download de-identified aggregate data for research, policy, or business! Further icing the cake, their automated rental stations are powered by solar panels. If a Bill proposed recently in Congress passes, bike sharing services like ours could be eligible for federal (in addition to city) funding nationwide. I’d vote yes! Would you?

bike share healthy tech right outside your door bike share app
Image credit: Capital Bikeshare App

Leave a comment

All comments are moderated before being published.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

When we care for ourselves and others, the greater world around us benefits.

Continue Reading

 tips for mindful living featured image

6 Tips for Mindful Living

"Mindfulness" might be trendy, but it's actually a concept that has been contemplated for thousands of years, starting when Buddhism originated around 400 BCE. Today, experts in mental health preac...
A Simple Self Care Plan: Play Everyday

A Simple Self Care Plan: Play Everyday

There are plenty of reasons that we encourage children to play everyday: play helps to develop their imagination, creativity, literacy, independence, and physical coordination. But play isn't benef...
Move More at Work + Stretches for a Standing Desk

Move More at Work + Stretches for a Standing Desk

Did you know that the average American adult sits for almost 10 hours every day? No wonder issues like back pain and weight gain are so common! Not only do many people spend a large percentage of t...
the benefits of gardening featured image

The Benefits of Gardening

Gardening comes in many forms and can be done by just about anyone, including children, city dwellers, and older adults. Even if you don't have your own backyard or a big space to devote to a garde...