Accelerating Clean Communities With E-Bike Systems (ACCESS)

E-bikes outsold electric cars by 2:1 in 2020, yet low public investment undervalues their clean transportation impacts and latent demand. Low-income and smaller communities are left out of the growing e-bike revolution, which blends active and electric mobility benefits. Shared micromobility companies rarely invest in these markets, nor do they offer a consistent, everyday transportation solution for residents. Meanwhile, personally owned e-bikes are often cost-prohibitive to purchase. Our solution encompasses short-, medium-, and long-term actions to make e-bikes accessible at a scale rarely seen in the United States. These actions include free e-bike lending libraries (leveraging a fleet of donated e-bikes), 1,500 substantial tiered e-bike rebates, and long-term supportive infrastructure planning within five disadvantaged communities across New York State.

This project will in the short-term, establish an e-bike lending library to benefit underserved neighborhoods in each community. Libraries will offer e-bikes free of charge for an extended period, enabling participants to discover how e-bikes can meet their daily travel needs and will include operations and maintenance, safety training, and community engagement activities. In the medium-term, the project will offer an e-bike purchase rebate to each library participant to provide a permanent electric transportation solution. In the long-term, the project will provide infrastructure planning to support electric active transportation in each community, including bike lanes, corrals, and charging facilities.