Community E-Bike Pool Purchase

Electric bicycles, E-bikes, decrease emissions, increase mobility for populations that cannot drive, and shorten travel times when traffic is congested. They only cost about 5-10% of a new car, but still represent a significant expense - especially when they cannot completely replace a car that still has a monthly payment. One way to reduce that cost is a bulk community purchase that would reduce the price of individual bikes. Local bike retailers have expressed interest in supporting this program to get more E-bikes in the community.

Status

Needs a Lead
Needs Funding
Needs Supporters

Ideas include a bulk purchase associated with the annual bike swap or EcoFair in the spring. The logistics of the bulk order commitment, administration and risk management still need to be developed.

Expected Impacts: The goal of adding more E-bikes to the community is to reduce the miles traveled in gas vehicles. E-Bikes have zero tailpipe emissions and require 10-20 Wh of charge per mile. Traveling by E-Bike instead of using the average gas vehicle reduces emissions by 97% for every mile traveled. If all local summer trips were made by E-Bike, the community's greenhouse gas emissions would be cut by 5%. Biking also has physical and mental health benefits over driving and is just as fast as (or faster than) driving for summer trips under 10 miles in and around the Town of Jackson.

Synergy with other priorities: This program is consistent with the goals in the Jackson/Teton County Comprehensive Plan and Integrated Transportation Plan to shift our mode of travel away from single occupancy vehicles and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from ground transportation.

Potential Partners:

Local bike shops
Friends of Pathways
Yellowstone/Teton Clean Cities

Potential Funders:

Community members

E-Bike Vouchers

Aluminum Recycling Promotion