Five Good Reasons to Cycle to Work

Reiner cycling on a very snowy Brussels road

Spring is just around the corner, so there are fewer excuses to delay your good intentions.  Instead of spending lots of money on going to the gym, why not cycle to work?  Here are five good reasons for taking your bike out of storage and getting fit!

1. Cyclists Are Less Affected by Traffic Jams

Traffic jams affect cyclists less, as it is easier for them to move around the road.  This also means that cyclists are less likely to be late for work.  If more people cycled than drove to work, there would be fewer traffic jams in the first place.  Fewer jams equal less stress and less pollution and in Brussels, Europe’s most congested city, this would be welcome.

2. Cycling Lowers Carbon Emissions

Leaving the car at home makes a big difference to your carbon footprint.  Even choosing to bike rather than take public transport makes a substantial difference.  A recent study by the European Cycling Federation found that if the EU cycling rate was the same as in Denmark, the bloc’s transport carbon emissions could be reduced by as much as 26%.

3. It’s Easy to Park a Bike

If you work in the city, finding a parking space can be tricky, especially if there are no car parks nearby.  Your bike, on the other hand, can be parked practically everywhere.  You just need a good lock and it’s far more convenient.

4. Biking Saves (and Can Even Make You) Money

As well as saving money on fuel and transport costs, if you’re lucky you can actually make money from biking.  More companies, including Sustainability Consult, remunerate their employees for cycling to work, often as a result of government initiatives which mean the employee is not taxed on the extra income.  For example, in Belgium you can be compensated up to 21 cents per kilometre cycled.  Some schemes in the UK and the Netherlands also help employees buy bikes tax-free.

5. Biking is Good for You

A recent study from Dutch research institute TNO found that employees who bike to work take less sick days.  The more people cycled and the further they rode, the less sick leave they took.

Blog by Reiner Wils

Reiner is not the only Sustainability Consult employee who enjoys cycling to work.  Check out these previous posts by Ana and Aris.