Lund’s biking initiative for businesses gets a prize

Businesses throughout the municipality can lease bicycles from the city’s mobility company and enjoy many benefits

With 260 km of high-quality bike lanes and 5,500 bike racks in the downtown alone, Lund is one of the best biking sites in Sweden, known for the high percentage of bicycle users. So, it came as no surprise that the city received yet another prize in this segment of urban transport, winning the competition ‘The Step Before’ organized by Klimatkommunerna (Climate municipalities) association.

Municipalities against climate change

Klimatkommunerna is an association of municipalities and regions in Sweden that work actively to address the issues of climate change. To draw attention to local initiatives in this field, the association has announced a competition called ‘The Step Before’. This year, the theme was the best measure to get more people to ride a bike and Lund municipality won for its initiative ‘The Fresh Bike’ aimed at employees.  

The idea is that if more people are to choose cycling over driving a car, they must be sure that there is a good and well-functioning bicycle at the workplace that will conveniently take them to work, a meeting or assignment. Therefore, ‘The Fresh Bike’ concept offers local businesses the opportunity to lease bicycles from Mobilitetsservice, Lund municipality's central management of vehicles, enjoying many benefits along the way.

Firstly, the business does not have to pay the entire cost of the bike at once. Secondly, servicing of the bike is included in the lease and bikes receive a review once a year to ensure that they are in good shape. When a bicycle malfunctions, the employee can email the bicycle service and it will be picked up for repair at the stationary workshop. A remodelled fossil fuel-free vehicle serves as a mobile workshop for easy-to-do repairs on the spot.   

“We started the venture in 2017 and with this award we hope that more businesses in Lund municipality will set their eyes on ‘The Fresh Bike’. Of course, we also hope that it will be an example for other municipalities to follow,” says Thea Ohlander Arfwidsson, project manager at Lund Municipality, quoted by the city website.

Great potential for reducing carbon dioxide emissions

Greenhouse gas emissions decrease when more people choose a bicycle over a combustible car. In addition, emissions are reduced by about 70% - 80% compared to whether the bikes are picked up and left by fossil-fuel vehicles from another bicycle operator, Lund Municipality claims. The Fresh Bike network currently comprises 337 bicycles, but there is great potential for increasing their number and scope.