Results of SVBC's Membership 2016 Survey: Bicycle/Transportation Habits, Concerns
Last month, we distributed a survey to our active SVBC membership base with a simple goal: learn more about our supporters and check in with our members to ultimately be a great bicycle advocacy organization. We collected about 287 surveys, reflecting 15% of our membership base.In the next couple of weeks, we’ll be sharing some of the findings from the survey, along with information that addresses the issues you care about, as well as questions that members have raised here in our offices. We hope that the findings and questions inspire a positive dialogue, both in the comments section below and at our upcoming Local Team meetings.
You ride your bicycle a lot.
- More than 52% of SVBC members ride their bicycle to work at least several times a week.
- More than 41% of SVBC members ride their bikes for errands, appointments, or several times a week.
- More than 42% of members ride for recreation several times a week.
While this is not ground-breaking news, it is very informative and positive to see many of you ride for a variety of trips and activities.This variety of bicycling habits shows that we represent a diverse bicycling community. Our membership base is made up of racers, commuters, fixie-lovers, and more, all spread throughout two large counties. We’re happy and damn proud to advocate for such a diverse community, and hope you are too.Additionally,
- 91% of our members own a car.
- 43% have used car-share services like Uber, and 30% of that group uses it at least once a month.
- More than 50% have taken their bike onto Caltrain in the last year; 24% on VTA Light Rail, 21% on BART; 13% on VTA Bus; and 3% on SamTrans. Thirty-two percent didn’t take their bike on any transit option.
SVBC has set a goal to see 10% of trips be by bike by 2025 in Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties; up from about 2% today. We recognize that cars are an inevitable option for some trips here in the region, and many members seem to acknowledge that through being car owners or ride-share users.Many also see the benefits of transit and bicycles, with bicycling serving as a 'first and last mile' solution for getting to and from transit. Learn more about our work with local transit agencies on bikes+transit.Our members would ride even more if they had safer streets and secure bike parking. Members would find the following very helpful in making bike riding more feasible for trips they don't usually take by bike.
- Trail or protected bike lanes: 73%
- More bicycle facilities such as bike lanes: 69%
- Secure bike parking at destination: 62%
- Lower speed/volume of car traffic along route
- Safer crossings at intersections
We feel you on this, members, which is why we are actively working on campaigns related to your concerns.
- See the types of bicycle lanes we advocate for when meeting with local leaders.
- Safe and comfortable freeway crossings on Highway 101 and 280.
- Our region-wide campaign for Vision Zero.
San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties are large, and while we do our best to address your bicycling concerns, we rely on your input and energy to keep us informed. While email and social media are good ways to alert us to issues, our Local Team meetings, open to all, are a way to suggest a local issue as an advocacy priority for SVBC. You can also request to staff and the SVBC Policy Advisory Committee to review your concern by filling out our Position Recommendation Form and sending it to advocacy@bikesiliconvalley.org.We’ll be addressing more of the survey findings in future blog posts, we look forward to hearing your thoughts and using the findings to strengthen our work!
