Pedal your way to multiple benefits with public bike sharing systems

When Marvin Scott came to Washington D.C. from a small town in Indiana, he had no idea that the transportation system in the area would turn out to be a major cause of concern for him. He was always late for his classes, and even shelling a hefty sum of money couldn’t ensure his timely arrival. That’s when he decided to look for alternatives for his daily commute to his university. He came across a bike-sharing service that allows people to rent a bike for their daily commute.

While that’s just one instance, these bike rental services have become widely popular across different cities in the world.

“The elements of affordability and accessibility have helped in the promotion and expansion of the concept of a bike rental system. And it definitely comes across as a win-win for just about anyone who is willing to skip the expensive cab services for a bike”, opines Claire Hutton, an expert on Humanities with Essaygator.com.

In fact, tourists can also avail such services and meander through the bustling city streets without going through the hassles of multiple bus transfers, taxi fares, and sore feet. Also, Mother Nature gets a little respite from the smog and pollution.

Aside from the obvious emphasis on environmental sustainability and the individual health benefits, there are some more positive impacts of public bike sharing that the commuters can enjoy.

1. Pocket-friendly and inexpensive option

Renting a bike to commute through the city involves a lot less expenditure. Generally, owning a car in a city means you have to fulfill the obligations related to maintenance and occasional repair, insurance, parking expenses and what not! Now, for working individuals, that may still be an option, but definitely not for students. So, renting a bike is the only economical option that they can consider which will definitely not burn a hole in their pockets.

2. Helps in getting acquainted with the surrounding

Such schemes have not only helped the commuters to reach their desired destinations, but also helped them in becoming acquainted with the nook and crannies of a new city. While cab rides can serve the same purpose, bikes are always a more convenient option owing to how flexible it can be. This means you will not have to wait endlessly for the traffic to disperse, and you can easily make your way towards your destination.

3. Care for your calories

Renting a bike to your destination means you are also catching up your daily fill of workouts. The exact number of calories burned on a ride differs from person to person, depending on their age, speed, and the topography. But researchers opine that cycling, on an average, burns as many calories as jogging, with significantly lower negative impacts on the joints.

Biking is also known to improve cardiovascular health and aerobic fitness, regulates blood pressure, builds muscle, boosts energy, and enhances coordination. So, sneaking the health benefits of biking into your daily commute is also going to keep away the guilt pangs of not working out enough.

4. The safety of commuting

As more and more people are availing the bike rental services, it is evolving to be a safe method of commuting. It will also reduce the number of collisions between drivers and people riding bikes to a great degree in a city. It means such services are capable of arising the sensibilities towards traffic and road safety rules.

In fact, studies have also revealed that the behaviour of a car driver also changes and motivates him to include safer driving practices when the number of cyclists increases.

Improvement in cycling laws

The bike sharing systems call for more appropriate cycling laws. Since the number of automobiles clearly outweighs the bicycles, biking laws are often ignored. But with the buzz around bike rentals, people are keen on opting for them as worthy alternatives to buses or cabs.

Also, bike share systems will allow the traffic laws to be in favour of the commuters, which will further lead to better law coverage, enforcement, and protection for the users. This will also mean additional responsibilities for automobile drivers, as they will have to be considerate about the pedestrians as well as the bikers.

The expansion of bike rentals across different cities

There are over 500 communities across the globe which signed on to bike sharing programs. And if researchers are to be believed, this phenomenon isn’t only restricted to the metropolitan cities like Seattle, New York, Paris, Aspen, Berlin, Mumbai, Pune, and Ahmedabad, but rather becoming widespread in remote areas as well.

Bike sharing system is indeed a helpful step that addresses the challenges of commute while reducing the levels of air pollution. With such schemes becoming more and more prominent, it will have a far-reaching impact on the different aspects of our lives, and significantly modify our health as well as economic conditions.
 
 
This article was written by Denis Gibbs, a marketing expert who is working for an MNC for the past 6 years. She has been associated with Myassignmenthelp as an academic expert for a couple of years and provides London assignment help services Apart from writing engaging blogs on marketing, tech and education trends, she likes hiking and surfing when not wooing her international clients with amazing marketing advice.