Bike to Work Day BloNo

Event/Bike BloNo/2016

The Problem

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation nearly half of all trips in metropolitan areas are three miles or less and 28 percent are one mile or less. For dense communities, biking to work is an easy alternative to traffic jams, sedentary lifestyles, and rising cost of transportation. Unfortunately a lack of infrastructure keeps commuters from making even a couple trips by bike per week, creating an inaccurate perception of lack of interest in bike commuting.

The Project

To get people bike to work, an incentive was needed. May 20, 2016 was National Bike to Work Day. Bike BloNo, the bicycle advocacy organization of Bloomington-Normal Illinois, hosted free coffee and donuts along the main biking artery, the Constitution Trail, to any bike rider commuting to work that morning. The trail was a safe option for less-experienced riders who were the primary target audience (regular commuters would already be participating and wouldn’t mind the diversion). The incentive also became a reward to both new riders and dedicated every-day bike commuters.

Responsibilities

  • Organized team of ten volunteers to plan and execute event in less than two months.
  • Created and oversaw design of event posters, maps, and social media graphics.
  • Coordinated communications and content between social media, news media, and webpage.
  • Partnered with city staff and local businesses to help share cost of consumables.
  • Reached out to major employers to incentivize participation.
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The Solution

The look and feel of the Bike to Work Day event was intrinsically tied to the branding of Bike BloNo. A visual typographic treatment of paint on pavement suggested not only the means by which the event was to take place (biking on the road and trail), but also connected the event to the immediate need for bike infrastructure in the community.

The Results

The Bike to Work Day event was covered in multiple media outlets, including a front page article in the newspaper. Facebook posts were some of the most commented and widely shared posts for the Bike BloNo page, leading to requests to hold the event monthly. In its inaugural outing, the event served over 150 people on bikes that morning, 50% more than anticipated through previous trail counts.

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