Bike & Ride enhances the appeal of rail travel by providing a flexible, convenient last-mile solution with significant benefits for travelers, rail providers, and employers alike. Among different Bike & Ride options, bike-sharing stands out as a flexible choice, enabling railway operators to add value to their core services while promoting active, sustainable commuting. This article explores the advantages of Bike & Ride and delves into its potential to transform the daily commute experience.
Hamburg’s shared public StadtRAD bikes in front of the central station support Bike & Ride
Through this social media post I realized how easy mobility improvements for many of us can be. By providing shared bikes at both the nearest train station and office, this employer not only increased the appeal of rail commuting but also tapped into a solution that provides several benefits: Bike & Ride with bike sharing
- Improves employee health through active mobility
- Reduces sick leave and boosts performance
- Decreases the need for costly parking spaces
- Enhances the company’s ESG rating with sustainable commuting
Best of all, employees love it.
Why Bike & Ride?
Most rail journeys begin and end outside the train station. Travelers often need to get to the departure station – the “first mile” – and, upon arrival, find a way to reach their destination – the “last mile.” Even if the rail portion of a journey is seamless, a challenging first or last mile can ruin the experience. Many use a personal vehicle for the first mile, while Park & Ride options are key, as you can read in the blog post on how to keep cars out of cities.
The last mile, however, poses a greater challenge. Passengers arriving at their destination station don’t typically have a personal vehicle, and unreliable transit connections force them to plan around delays, risk taking an earlier train, or pay for costly taxis if connections fail. These inconveniences, or “transfer penalties,” make rail travel less appealing compared to car travel. Offering flexible last-mile transport is thus crucial for increasing rail usage. It serves as a catalyst for public transport. Also Mobility hubs play an important role in this regard as the physical link between rail transport and the first and last mile options.
Intermodal travel chain starting with a private car, switching to rail transport and ending with a bike ride
Bicycles make an ideal choice for the last mile, especially for distances of one to five kilometers. Integrating bikes with rail journeys, referred to as “Bike & Ride,” has immense potential to make train travel more attractive. This is even promoted by the European Declaration on Cycling:
5. Cycling and Public Transport
- Strengthen the integration of cycling with public transport to create seamless, multimodal journeys.
- Support the development of cycling and bike-sharing programs as part of public transport systems.
When to use Bike & Ride?
A walkable last mile is rarely a problem. With a 15-minute or 1-kilometer range considered manageable, no additional transport is needed. But for destinations farther than 1 km, extending a station’s catchment area through convenient options like shared bicycles is crucial. Compared to buses, which are rigid in schedule and route, bicycles offer flexible, efficient alternatives for covering distances of 1-4 km.
According to Germany’s federal environment agency the average speed of pedal bikes is 15.3 km/h and for eBikes 17.4 km/h. Given a change time of 4 min to fetch the bike compared to 0 min on foot, still the catchment area of a train station gets extended eight times with a pedal bike and ten times with an eBike in a 15 min time frame.
Travel time comparison on foot, via pedal bike and pedelec.
Source: Umweltbundesamt (federal environment agency of Germany)
Example: City of Hamburg with the catchment areas for its main station: on foot, via pedal bikes and via eBikes.
Image based on: Hamburg_location_map.svg: NordNordWest derivative work: MichaelBueker, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Two main use cases are common for bike & ride trips:
Day Visits
For railway passengers seeking a flexible all-day transport option, renting a bike at the train station is ideal. They can pick up a bike upon arrival, use it throughout their stay, and return it to the same station before departure. These round-trip or “A-to-A” rides form the backbone of the Dutch OV-fiets model, where bikes are rented from and returned to the same station. This model eliminates the need for multiple bike sharing stations, thus avoiding the logistical challenges of rebalancing bikes across locations, which keeps operational costs low. However, a full-day rental typically comes with a higher fee, making it less suitable for daily commutes. Instead, this A-to-A setup is well-suited for occasional day visits.
Commute to Work or Education
For frequent commuters, low fares are key – ideally bundled with their train tickets. This setup only becomes economically viable if bikes aren’t held all day, allowing each bike to be used multiple times a day. Here, a corresponding counter station is essential, where travelers can drop off the bike, making it available for the next user. This arrangement supports multiple short trips each day between the station and the final destination, lowering the per-ride fare and making it ideal for daily use. However, counter stations bring the challenge of maintaining balance: bikes may accumulate at one station while running low at the other. This issue is less common in shift-based workplaces, but in cases of imbalance, solutions like inefficient and expensive rebalancing bikes or offering user incentives can help ensure bikes are available where needed most.
Options for Bikes at the Destination Station
Due to its potential to attract more rail passengers and reduce train-bike congestion, many European rail companies are now offering bike-sharing options. Though not necessarily profitable on its own, the resulting boost in rail transport makes bike-sharing a worthwhile investment for rail transport providers.
Option 1: Bring your bike on the train. This has space limitations and poses the risk that you might not get on the fully occupied train. Many railway companies do not allow bikes on trains during the rush hours. It is also a hassle to board, secure the bikes on the train and unboard. In addition, boarding and unboarding bikes on trains are a major cause for delays. So, bottom line taking bikes on trains is not recommended – except for folding bikes.
Option 2: Leave a second bike at your destination station. This is common in the Netherlands, where commuters place “stations fiets” at the train stations closest to their place of work. These are usually rather shabby bikes in order not to attract bike thieves. This is an option if you can afford a second bike to leave it at a frequently visited station. Nevertheless it clutters train stations as it doubles the number of bikes in use.
Option 3: Use a Bike-Sharing Scheme. The ideal choice for flexibility, a bike-sharing program allows travelers to pick up and drop off bikes as needed. Ideally the pricing allows to take the bike for the entire stay – or the bike sharing system allows to leave it at the final destination. From a traveler point of view, bike sharing is the most attractive option.
Leading European Railway Companies Bike-Sharing Programs
Europe has a well-developed public transport system and a high affinity for cycling, making it a pioneer in bike-sharing for rail travel. Among the prominent programs of railway companies:
- Netherlands: The Dutch Railways (Nederlandse Spoorwegen) offers the famous OV-fiets, probably the most popular bike-sharing program in Europe, with over 300 stations and 22,500 bikes serving around 6 million rides annually.
- Other countries’ rail companies are catching up with similar offerings, including:
- Austria: ÖBB 360°
- Croatia: SUSTANCE Bike Rental
- Denmark: Kørmit
- France: le Velo
- Germany: Call a Bike
- Italy: Bicincittà
- Spain: Train Bike
- Switzerland: PubliBike
The famous Dutch OV-fiets shared bikes
Image credits: Willem_90, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
In Summary
Bike & Ride enhances the appeal of rail travel, offering flexibility especially for the last mile. From a commuter’s perspective, bike-sharing provides flexibility, while for rail operators, it boosts ridership. Companies located within 1-4 km of a train station can significantly benefit from nearby bike-sharing stations, connecting them to the larger rail network and enabling sustainable, healthy and enjoyable commuting options for employees.
Related film about OV fiets and the potential of bike sharing for public transport: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVbvul7Psss