High gas prices and warmer weather are motivating some people to take the bus or bike to work, hoping to save money by avoiding the pump.
Dana Thompson had never taken a bike to work until last Wednesday. That morning, he rented a bike from Spin, the micro mobility company best known for e-scooters, and rode from Grandview Heights to downtown Columbus for the city's 'Bike to Work Day' event.
"At first, it was just an alien concept to me. I never considered biking to work," Thompson said.
Thompson is a planner at Columbus' Department of Public Service on projects that can help pedestrians, bicyclists and commuters get around without using a car, such as the Capital Line pedestrian pathway under construction downtown or the Central Ohio Transit Authority’s LINKUS project.
With gas prices hovering at or above $4.50 a gallon in some parts of Columbus, Thompson said avoiding the pump by riding his bike is a bonus.
"It means relying less on my car, more environmentally friendly and I don't have to pay as much for gas," Thompson said.
Tyler Akins, an architect from Clintonville, said he rides the Olentangy and Scioto trails to work downtown about twice a week. He said when he has had to get gas for his car recently, it has been a pain.
"I filled up my gas tank the other day and it was like $55 and I drive a Honda Civic," Akins said. "I would like to ride more in terms of going to the grocery store as well, so it's kind of just motivation to actually start doing that."
Ivan Vukovic, who is also an architect, said he regularly takes his bike to work three or four times a week. It's a 7.5-mile ride from his home in Upper Arlington to his job in Franklinton. Vukovic said he is glad he is avoiding rising gas prices, but that is not really motivation for him.
"I feel better in the morning, getting in after riding my bike," Vukovic said. "Exercise, being outdoors, it clears your head and you don't have to deal with rush hour traffic."
U.S. Census Bureau data from the American Community Survey shows less than 1% of people in Columbus ride their bikes to work regularly.
Vukovic said he is seeing more bicyclists on the Olentangy and Scioto trails, which he takes to work. Vukovic is not sure whether the increase he is seeing is due to the high price of gas or just warmer weather.
"I ride year round. So, like middle of January, it's just me and maybe one other person that I'll see on the trail. But once the weather breaks, you see a lot of people, especially around campus," Vukovic said.
Emily Brown, with the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission, helps encourage sustainable modes of transportation such as transit, biking and carpooling. Through a voluntary website survey, Brown and MORPC have seen an uptick in people logging their bike trips to work.
"Especially within the past few weeks, few months we've definitely seen a spike in people logging their trips, which definitely communicates that the increase in fuel costs has people turning towards biking," Brown said.
Brown said most bicyclists tend to live in Franklin County where the infrastructure exists, but many people are also starting to carpool to work in the other 14 counties MORPC monitors.
"Even in the more rural areas where modes are more limited than they are in the downtown urban core area, we still see people turning towards sustainable modes," Brown said.
It is not just more bikes on the road recently. COTA reported an uptick in ridership since gas prices spiked, noting that some of its more popular lines were seeing 9% to 18% more riders.
Brown said she thinks people starting to ride the bus to work, take their bike, or even carpool will try to make this a habit, even if gas prices fall.
"Once they do try something new, they realize that I'm getting to work in a much better mood after not sitting in traffic, or I'm more in touch with my neighborhood and my surroundings from being outside of the four walls of my car," Brown said.
Thompson, who rented a Spin bike last week, said he may look into buying his own bike soon. He wants people to know they should give biking to work a try.
"I would say be open to it and give it a try," Thompson said. "I think I was just 100% a driver before I came to this job, and even in Columbus I haven't really considered transit as an option."
Akins echoed this sentiment.
"If you are not riding a bike, you should ride a bike," Akins said. "Bikes are great."
