You might recognize F5 Networks, a technology company that specializes in Application Delivery Networking, from F5 Bike to Work Day (I hope you’re planning to ride this year on Friday, May 17!). Last year, over 16,000 people rode to work on their bikes as part of the event.

F5 Networks bicyclists on F5 Bike to Work Day 2010. As the title sponsor of Seattle's annual Bike to Work Day, F5 supports bicycling and its benefits throughout the region. The company also has an active community of cyclists who regularly bike to the office.

Not only does F5 promote bicycling and its benefits throughout the region through their title sponsorship of Bike to Work Day, but the company also has an active community of cyclists who regularly bike to the office. F5 achieved Bronze level BizCycle certification for bike-friendly best practices, earning 23 of 50 possible credits.

While some companies’ support for bicycling comes from grassroots employee demand, F5 Networks has what it refers to as “executive sponsorship” of cycling. All F5 executives take part in Bike Month and create their own team each year for the Commute Challenge.  F5 runs an internal Commute Challenge site to track stats, send messages and facilitate the participation of F5 workplaces across the nation. So far this May, seventeen teams have registered with 132 riders and 24 new commuters.

For daily support, F5 offers 200 spaces of secure bike parking for its 1,000 employees. The office, located on Elliot Avenue West in Lower Queen Anne, is conveniently located adjacent to the Elliott Bay Trail. Showers, lockers, towel service and a $100 per month alternative transportation incentive stipend round out the support.

Congratulations to F5, and keep up the good work! F5 Bike to Work Day is Friday, May 17—make tracks and bike to work!

Is your F5 Bike to Work Day commute invigorated by a bike-friendly employer? Learn more about how your workplace can join 20 organizations in the region recognized for their support for bicycling at bizcycle.cascade.org or by emailing bizcycle@cascadebicycleclub.org.

Back in 2002, when Seattle’s bicycle commuting rate hovered around 2 percent (it’s now 3.5 percent) and gas prices averaged $1.60 per gallon, Adobe Seattle installed a bicycle workshop for its employees in an effort to support and encourage bicycle commuting. Far ahead of the bicycle-friendly employer curve then, Adobe continues to lead the pack and is now certified in BizCycle’s first cohort as a Gold level bike-friendly workplace.

Today the “Zac Imboden Bike Cage Workshop” serves the 5 percent of Adobe employees who commute to work by bike, getting them to and from home safely with tools for everything from fixing a flat to truing a wheel. The workshop and other amenities are monitored by SeaBike, Adobe Seattle’s internal bike group that provides a communication and community hub to inform employees about facilities and encourage riding.

SeaBike has been around since before 1997, according to Jeff Moran, a Senior Engineering Manager at Adobe who spearheaded certification.  SeaBike informs employees about Adobe’s incentive programs for alternative commuting, pairs inexperienced commuters with a bike buddy from their neighborhood, messages about upcoming bicycle events at Adobe and connects employees to bicycle advocacy organizations in the community. Each month, SeaBike nominates the bicyclists who rides in the most  as Commuter of the Month, and the lucky pick receives what is known as the best spot in the bike cage to park in style all month long.

While Adobe’s bicycle culture is evident and its cyclists are enthusiastic about spreading the joy of biking to work, Moran traces the success of Adobe’s bicycle program back to the company’s supportive and responsive local facilities team and on-site leadership that recognizes the benefit of putting funds toward cycling.

“I joined Adobe in 1997 because their logo was on the 1996 Bike To Work Day water bottle. Seriously, my selection process was that simple,” Moran explains. “As an Adobe Seattle cyclist I’ve simply set out to keep the community strong and Adobe helps me at every turn.”

Not only does Adobe demonstrate top-notch support internally for bicyclists, this year Adobe is presenting the Commute Challenge as part of Bike Month, an event that encourages over 12,000 people to commute to work by bike during May and beyond.

Adobe scored 35 out of 50 possible credits to receive Gold level certification, but there’s still room to improve.

“At this point Adobe Seattle does so much to encourage and support bicycle commuting that this itself is our biggest challenge,” said Moran.

The next step is to focus on how to attract new riders and retain fair weather riders. A women’s bicycle commuting group is in the works to support female bicyclists who might be in either category.

Congratulations, Adobe! Adobe joins twenty other workplaces in the region who support bicycling. Would you like to see your organization on the list? Visit  bizcycle.cascade.org or email bizcycle@cascadebicycleclub.org to learn more.

Long famous for its coffee culture, Seattle is increasingly becoming recognized for its bike culture, too. From this trend, it’s no surprise that the city’s most recognized coffee company also promotes biking to work. BizCycle congratulates Starbucks Coffee Company on their silver level certification. The company headquarters earned 25 of 50 possible credits.

I usually need at least one cup of coffee to get myself on my bike in the morning but for Starbucks partners, pedaling to work is motivated by more than just a steaming mug of Pikes Place Roast. Employees who commute by bike receive either $25 every month or a membership to the facility’s onsite gym. Brent Stavig, the Employee Transportation Coordinator at Starbucks, remarks that incentives aren’t the only factors contributing to the bike culture.

“The physical fitness aspect is certainly important, as are the cost savings and lessened environmental impact, but there’s a pride issue as well,” Brent explained in an email, “and I think that our partners feel a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction when they commute by bicycle.”

The commute to the Starbucks Corporate Headquarters in SODO isn’t always easy. As Stavig described, “1^st Avenue South is basically a freeway, and even though there are ‘sharrows’, trying to share lanes with large delivery trucks and harried motorists presents safety issues.” A lack of safe infrastructure makes bicycling an intimidating endeavor, especially for first-time bike commuters.

Despite external infrastructure challenges, a vigorous bicycle community has formed at Starbucks, and Stavig hopes that BizCycle certification will lend more visibility to the support offered to bicyclists at the workplace. The application process also gave him some ideas for improvement. What’s brewing on the to-do list: increasing capacity for employee bike parking and considering ways to make the outdoor visitor bike rack more visible.

Also, as a sponsor of Bike Month, Starbucks is offering a free brewed beverage to cyclists on Bike to Work Day, May 17.  Just show your helmet at these participating Starbucks® locations and pick up a free tall (12 fl.oz.) beverage as a reward for your extra leg work!

What gets you on your bike in the morning? Is it a workplace that supports your two-wheeled commute—or maybe you wish that were it? Whether your organization deserves accolades or could use a boost regarding bike commuting, BizCycle can help.  Check out bizcycle.cascade.org or email bizcycle@cascadebicycleclub.org for more information.

As Fred Hutch states, “We are a world-class research organization and our bicycle commuting program is world class as well.”

The Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center is a world leader in cancer research and has been on the cutting edge of treatments, prevention methods and therapies since 1975. The organization has also been on the cutting edge in another health-boosting arena: bicycling.

BizCycle is proud to announce that Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center certified as a  Gold level bicycle-friendly workplace. As Fred Hutch states, “We are a world-class research organization and our bicycle commuting program is world class as well.”

Fred Hutch has one of the highest employee bike commuting rates in Seattle for a workplace of its size. Of over 2600 employees, seven percent bicycle to work regularly. Employees who bike are supported with showers, locker rooms, towel service, secure parking and even a twice yearly maintenance subsidy. The Hutch also supports bicycle commuting with a multi-modal approach, outfitting their shuttles with bicycle racks and working with the South Lake Union Streetcar to improve transit access to the facility.

Externally, the research center has advocated for improved mobility and safety in South Lake Union for walking, bicycling and transit as corridor and intersection redesign projects move forward in the neighborhood. They have been providing comments on the Seattle Bicycle Master Plan Update and partner with PATH, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Seattle Children’s and the University of Washington on the South Lake Union Road Safety Group.

Fred Hutch earned 35 out of 50 possible credits for its bicycle-friendly best practices. While BizCycle certification presented an opportunity to applaud the organization’s tremendous efforts to support bicycling, even a Gold level workplace came away with some strategic reflections and a to-do list. As the center reflected, one of the organization’s biggest barriers to encouraging bicycling is still the weather and perceptions of safety on the street. While the former may be out of our control, employer involvement in the conversation about safer streets for all modes of transportation can help tip the scale toward infrastructure improvements that make bicycling an attractive and accessible option for people of all ages and abilities. Additionally, planning for future growth is now on their radar. Fred Hutch set a goal to increase bicycling to 9% of commuters. According to the facilities department, “We recognize that as we grow our bicycle commuting population, we’ll need to grow our facilities to support that growth! We are looking at ways to add more capacity for racks and lockers in future renovation plans.”

Congratulations to Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center! Whether your company is already bike-friendly or looking to become more so (or both!), BizCycle certification is simple and effective. Join Fred Hutch and 20+ other organizations in the region as BizCycle-certified workplaces. Contact bizcycle@cascadebicycleclub.org today or visit bizcycle.cascade.org to learn more. 

Welcome the Timbuk2 crew to Seattle and check out the BizCycle certified location at a grand opening celebration on Saturday, May 4 from noon until 8 p.m. on 7th Ave. and Pine.

Bicycle bag company Timbuk2 is opening a new retail location in downtown Seattle on Saturday, May 4.  And the San Francisco-based company is coming to the Seattle bicycling scene not just as a bicycle-friendly retailer but as a bicycle-friendly workplace.

Timbuk2’s first out-of-the-Bay-area retail location applied for BizCycle certification to recognize the company’s commitment to enhancing the Emerald City bicycle culture even before the retailer had a fully hired staff and operational place of business. We like where their priorities lie! All of Timbuk2’s hard work to certify the new Seattle location  paid off: the store earned 30 out of 50 possible credits for Silver level certification.

Although their enthusiasm to be included in our first round of applicants cost Timbuk2 a few credits that hinge upon existing operations, the store’s yet-to-open status uniquely positioned Timbuk2 to shape employee programs and shop policies with the BizCycle credit list and Best Practices Guide in mind.  From minor changes like including bike commuting resources in new employee hiring packets and placing a “How to Put Your Bike on the Bus” poster in the bathroom, to plans to partner with local hotels and hospitality businesses to become a cycling hub for staff, Timbuk2 used BizCycle’s resources to help inform how they could encourage and support bicycling at their new retail location and beyond.

Plenty of bicycle parking outside of Timbuk2's new store as part of the retailer's efforts to be bicycle-friendly to both staff and customers. More reason to take your bike out shopping with you! Photo courtesy of Timbuk2.

What else is in the works? Timbuk2 Seattle will offer a free, first come, first served bike share program for anyone in need of a pedal. While BizCycle has encountered other local workplaces that have common bikes available for midday transportation, Timbuk2’s program offering a free bike borrowing service from 10 minutes to all day trips is the first no cost public bike sharing system in the area, and as such, earned the store a BizCycle Infrastructure Innovation credit.

Join the Timbuk2 crew at a grand opening celebration on Saturday, May 4 from noon until 8 p.m. at  1532 7th Avenue. Hear about Timbuk2’s BizCycle prowess as they release the details of their bike share program, and be sure to check out the store’s newly installed indoor and outdoor bicycle parking options.

Oh, and in addition to bike parking best practices, Timbuk2 promises a D.J., photobooth, refreshments (frosty adult beverages at 6 p.m.), giveaways and “plenty of high fives” all day long.

High five right back at you, Timbuk2! Congratulations on BizCycle Silver and welcome to Seattle!