Bike to Work Day
Save the date!
Oakland's 17th annual Bike to Work Day will be held at City Hall on Thursday, May 13, 2010. Want to volunteer? Email bikeped@oaklandnet.com.About Bike to Work Day 2009
The City of Oakland's 16th annual Bike to Work Day was a great success, drawing at least 664 cyclists (counted by the number of "I biked to work" stickers given out). This is a 33% increase over the number of cyclists that participated last year (2008). Alameda County energizer stations showed a 44% increase over the number of cyclists that participated last year with over 9,600 cyclists riding on Bike to Work Day!
See slideshows:
- by Transportation Services Division engineer (and photographer) Darian Avelino
- on the East Bay Bicycle Coalition's Flickr page (various photographers)
- by photographer Howard Neal
- on 511.org's Bicycling pages
About the event:
- Bike to Work Day Pancakes, Prizes and All-Day Valet Bike Parking
- Raffle Prizes and Sponsors
- Oakland Bike Month Activities:calendar, .pdf
- Bike Bucks, 15% discounts at Oakland bike shops!
- Pedal Pools: bike downtown with your Council member/staff
- Download flyer (.pdf)
- Register for the regional event to be eligible for prizes
- Team Bike Challenge / Bike Commuter of the Year / Other Energizer Stations (East Bay Bicycle Coalition website)
- Bike Commute Tips
- What is Bike to Work Day?
- Why Bike to Work?
- Photos from 2008
- Photos from 2007
- Photos/Logo from 2006
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Bike to Work Day Pancakes, Prizes and All-Day Valet Bike Parking
At Oakland's 16th Annual Bike to Work Day celebration, participating cyclists enjoyed:- A free pancake breakfast (7-9am), courtesy Palapas Taco Bar, Tully's Coffee and Whole Foods Market
- Free Club One Day Pass (for showers and more)
- Free all-day valet bike parking, courtesy East Bay Bicycle Coalition
- AC Transit bike rack loading demos
- Free bike mini-tune-ups, courtesy of Bay Area Bikes and Wheels of Justice Cyclery
- A canvas bag with goodies (including Amtrak & Capitol Corridor companion-fare coupons, the Walk Oakland! Map & Guide, and an "I Bike Oakland" bike tube sticker)
- A raffle with prizes donated by local businesses including this year's Grand Prize: round-trip tickets for two to Santa Barbara on Amtrak!
Everyone was invited to stop by and check out:
- Tables with information about low-impact commuting, bicycle-friendly projects, and sustainable transportation and related issues (7:00-9:00am)
- Press conference featuring all Oakland City Council members and Alameda County Supervisor Nate Miley
- Raffle prize drawing (8:30am)
Raffle Prizes and Sponsors
City Hall event-goers were able to enter a raffle with great prizes donated by local business and agencies:
- Grand Prize round-trip tickets for two to Santa Barbara on Amtrak
- Two sets of round-trip tickets for two on the Amtrak Capitol Corridor
- Two sets of one-month passes at Oakland City Center Club One, 1200 Clay Street
- A 31-day Translink card from AC Transit
- $50 gift certificate to Mua Restaurant and Bar, 2442a Webster
- San Francisco Bay Trail map packet
- Four "flexibility packs" (a $20 BikeLink card and a Yoga Class at Great Western Power Company)
- $25 gift certificate from the Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave
- $30 gift certificate from Pacific Coast Brewing, 906 Washington
- $30 gift certificate from The Trappist, 460 8th Street
- Passes for four to the Oakland Museum of California
- Two T-shirts from the East Bay Bicycle Coalition
Oakland Bike Month Activities
See the City of Oakland Bike Month Calendar (.pdf). Find other bike-related activities throughout May and the Bay on the calendars of the following organizations:
- Walk Oakland ~ Bike Oakland (Oakland-centric)
- East Bay Bicycle Coalition (Alameda and Contra Costa Counties)
- Bay Area Bicycle Coalition (Bay Area)
Read the proclamation adopted by the Oakland City Council on April 21, 2009 proclaiming May 14, 2009 as Oakland Bike to Work Day and May 2009 as Oakland Bike Month.
^ top of pageBike Bucks, 15% discounts
Oakland's bike shops support Bike to Work Day by giving 15% off on accessories during the month of May to "BikeBucks" holders. All Oakland Bike to Work Day goodie bags will include a Bike Buck and the coupons will be distributed at the annual Earth Expo in Frank Ogawa Plaza on April 15. Oakland extends sincerest thanks to our great bike shops, listed below, for their ongoing support of Bike Bucks!
Bay Area Bikes
2424 Webster Street
763-BIKE (2453), M-F 10-7; Sa 10-6; Su 12-5
The Bent Spoke
6124 Telegraph Avenue
652-3089, T-F 11-6; Sa-Su 11-5
Cycle Sports
3530 Grand Avenue
444-7900, M-F 11-7; Sa 10-6; Su 11-5
Fruitvale Bikestation at the Fruitvale BART
left of the Caesar Chavez Plaza entrance
within a hundred feet of the northeast BART exit
536-2200, M-F 6a-8p
Hank & Frank Bikes
6030 College Avenue
654-BIKE, M-Sa 10-6; Su 11-5
Manifesto Bicycles
421 40th Street
595-1155, M,T,Th,F 11-7, Sa, Su 11-6
Montano Velo
4266 Piedmont Avenue
654-VELO (8356), T-F 11-7; Sa 10-5; Su (by appt)
Pioneer Bike Shop
11 Rio Vista Avenue
658-8981, T-Sa 10-6
Tip Top Bike Shop
4800A Telegraph Ave.
444-4148, M, W-F 11-7; Sa-Su 12-6
Wheels of Justice Cyclery
2024 Mountain Blvd
339-6091, M-W, F-Sa 10-6; Th 11-7; Su 10-5
Bike Downtown With a Pedal Pool
On May 14, participants biked to City Hall with City Council member/staff, neighbors and friends. Pools departed from throughout Oakland and arrived at City Hall in time for pancakes. All Oakland City Council Members (Brunner, Kernighan, Nadel, Quan, De La Fuente, Brooks, Reid, and Kaplan) RSVPed, and all but one rode.
Download Pedal Pool contacts and routes (.pdf).
Bike Commute Tips
If you haven't biked in a while or are new to biking to work:
- Check out your route in advance.
- Make sure your bike is reasonably well tuned and your helmet fits.
- Wear comfortable clothing; if you need to dress up for work, consider bringing clothes the day before and leaving them in your office, and changing after you get to work.
- Save room for pancakes, but don't cycle on an empty stomach.
- Get an early start.
- If you're planning to mix bike and transit, please be aware of BART bike blackout times (mornings and evenings in the "commute direction"), and that AC Transit bus bike racks may be more full than usual on Bike to Work Day. Leave extra time.
Coming from SF? Try either BART or the Oakland/Alameda Ferry. During commute hours, board BART at Embarcadero Station and disembark at Lake Merritt Station for a short ride downtown. (Note: the 12th and 19th Street Stations do not allow bikes during commute times.) The Ferry is free on Bike to Work Day! For schedule, rates, and other information, go to http://www.eastbayferry.com/when/when.html.
Check out Oakland's Bicycle Commuting 101 tips (.pdf). The Metropolitan Transportation Commission also has bike commute tips at the Bicycling pages on www.511.org.
What is Bike to Work Day?
Bike to Work Day is an annual, statewide event, and the highlight of the California Bike Commute Week and National Bike Month. Thousands of bicyclists find event "Energizer Stations" at strategically placed locations where cyclists can stop, get a canvas bicycle-style bag filled with treats and bicycling information, a free cup of coffee or juice or snack, and words of encouragement. The biggest Energizer Station in the East Bay is the annual pancake breakfast in downtown Oakland in front of City Hall.
In the Bay Area, cyclists who pledge to cycle to work, school, transit, errands or play anytime during the third week of May are eligible for special prizes.
Why Bike to Work?
The annual Bike to Work Day event is held statewide to encourage bicycling as a non-polluting and healthy commute option. Bike to Work Day is part of the City of Oakland’s strategy to promote cycling to provide affordable transportation, improve public health, and fight global warming. Besides being fun, biking to work is good for your health and for the environment.
- If every person living within 5 miles of their workplace pedaled to their job on Bike to Work Day, more than 60,000 vehicles would be off the road, reducing tailpipe emissions by more than 150,000 pounds.
- Twelve bicycles can fit in the space needed to park a single car freeing up parking spaces.
- Bicycling to work is a great way to get a little bit of exercise everyday.
- With gas prices rising and unlikely to decline in the long term, bicycling makes more financial sense than ever; a bike’s annual operating cost is estimated to be $120 (vs. $5,000-12,000 for a car).
- The well-documented obesity epidemic contributes to heart disease, cancer, stroke and type 2 diabetes, which, together, constitute 40% of the leading causes of death in Oakland.
- For short trips, bicycling is an important tool to combat global warming: up to 70% of emissions from a 10-mile trip occur within the first mile. In the Bay Area, 43% of trips are two miles or less. For longer trips, bicycles can be successfully combined with transit. According to Oakland’s recently adopted Bicycle Master Plan, 85% of Oakland residents live within two miles of a major transit station.
Bike to Work Day 2008
Oakland's 15th Annual Bike to Work Day was Thursday, May 15, 2008. An estimated 500+ cyclists celebrated 15 straight years of pancakes, prizes and all-day valet bike parking at Oakland City Hall. Festivities were a collaboration between the City of Oakland, East Bay Bicycle Coalition, and local sponsoring businesses. See:
- BTWD 2008 slideshow
- photos from volunteer Alan Hollie
- photos from 511.org
- post-event article in Oakland Tribune
Bike to Work Day 2007
In 2007, Oakland's 14th Annual Bike to Work Day on May 17 broke another record, attracting 459 bicyclists, 39% more than in 2006. See Photo Gallery from 2007.
^ top of pageBike to Work Day 2006
In 2006, Oakland's 13th Annual Bike to Work Day was held on May 18. A record 330+ cyclists participated. See a Photo Gallery from the event. Below is the logo from 2006, designed by internationally known cartoonist, Andy Singer.