Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Bicycle-Friendly Business Districts Flourishing

Have you heard of bicycle-friendly business districts (BFBDs)? I've heard reference to how bicycling and walking spur local economies but didn't realize there was an actual name for it.

When we hop on a bike instead of in a car, we tend to stay closer to home and support small businesses. We also notice more businesses since we’re traveling slower and closer to businesses. Realizing this, many merchants are now encouraging people to bike to their businesses, and actively marketing themselves as bicycle-friendly. Some even offer specials and savings to people who arrive in other ways than in a vehicle.

That's what Spokane Bike Week did when they first released their 'Bicycle Benefits' stickers a few years ago. Anyone with one of the stickers on their bike helmet would get special deals at participating businesses.

Well now a lot more businesses are realizing the potential and jumping on the BFBD band wagon. Transportation Issues Daily has the story.

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About SRTC

SRTC is the federally designated Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for Spokane County. Urbanized areas with populations exceeding 50,000 people are required to have an MPO. SRTC was formed to address the county's transportation planning needs. It provides coordination in planning between the public, cities, small towns, the county, the state, transit providers, and tribes.

SRTC offers services including transportation monitoring, transportation modeling, census information analysis, travel demand forecasting, historical traffic count analysis, geographic information systems, and trip generation rates.