How to Become a Bicycle Friendly Business

I first became aware of the Bicycle Friendly Business Program instituted by the League of American Bicyclists from Cara Hall of Fort Wayne Outfitters and Bike Depot.

I had asked Cara to bring the community up to date on innovative ways that Fort Wayne Outfitters is reaching out to the green community and helping our area become sustainable.

This is how I found out that Fort Wayne Outfitters and Bike Depot is one of only four companies in Indiana that has been awarded the Bicycle Friendly Business Program designation by the League of American Bicyclists.

Each year, the League of American Bicyclists ranks the states on bicycle friendliness. They set criteria in the following areas; legislation, policies and programs, infrastructure, education and encouragement, evaluation and planning, and enforcement.

Indiana ranked 27 out of the 50 states with only 3 Bicycle Friendly Cities on board!

Indiana also got a big fat D in infrastructure, which is no surprise when we consider that Indiana is a Rust Belt state, a state that has, for decades depended on the automobile industry for growth, and is entrenched in a lifestyle of urban sprawl.

The City of Fort Wayne is trying. It has a bicycle friendly program in place. There are also exceptional citizen advocacy groups, such as Friends of the Parks, Aboite Trails, and others. Fort Wayne is also the home of two superlative park systems, Fort Wayne Parks and Recreation and the Allen County Parks System, that work tirelessly on trails and bike paths.

Those companies like Fort Wayne Outfitters and Bike Depot, however, that take the initiative to apply for and take the necessary steps to become a Bicycle Friendly Business recognized by the League of American Bicyclists help the cause by highlighting a growth oriented path towards a locally centered type of lifestyle. They also set a template for other local companies to aspire towards the same goal.

This course is not without challenge. In order to become a Bicycle Friendly Business, a business must meet stringent standards set up by the League of American Bicyclists.

Each business must complete an application and meet those standards in order to attain the award.

If you believe your business might be a viable candidate for this honor, my suggestion is to go to the League of American Bicyclists website and bring up the Bicycle Friendly Business Program. You will be able to see a PDF form of the application before you actually apply in order to get an idea of what needs to be done in order to comply with the standards of the League.

I believe the standards set forth should be a viable goal for all companies. If they were the communities would come together naturally.

"This Bicycle Friendly Business is making a difference for employees, customers, and communities," said Bill Nesper, Director of the Bicycle Friendly America Program. "Fort Wayne Outfitters and Bike Depot promote bicycling as a viable form of transportation and give their employees choices and options that make biking to work easy and fun."

It's time for all of us to make it so!