Try BIKETOWN Free In October; Help Girls Get Bikes

From Motivation: BIKETOWN, along with some of the largest bike share systems across the country, is taking part in a new nationwide campaign to shrink the gender gap in bike share and is partnering with Girl Up to help more girls around the world ride towards education and a better future.

For every new BIKETOWN rider who uses the promo code GIRLUP18 to try bike share for the first time in October, Motivate, the company that operates BIKETOWN, will donate $1 to the Girl Up SchoolCycle program, which provides bikes to girls to help them access education and stay in school.

The promo code GIRLUP18 is redeemable in the BIKETOWN app and valid for a free 30-minute trip with the Pay-As-You-Go plan — giving riders a chance to try the system for free while also participating in a meaningful cause.

This initiative is ongoing in eight cities throughout the month of October, including New York City (Citi Bike), Jersey City (Citi Bike), Washington D.C (Capital Bikeshare), Chicago (Divvy), the Bay Area (Ford GoBike), Portland (BIKETOWN), Minneapolis (Nice Ride) and Columbus (COGO).

“For Women’s Bike Month this October, we’re encouraging new riders to pedal with a purpose,” said Dorothy Mitchell, BIKETOWN General Manager. “Do something good for yourself while you help girls around the world get to school.”

“For many girls in countries like Malawi and Guatemala a bike is the difference between staying in school and having to drop out due to distance. We’re happy to be partnering with BIKETOWN so riders can help more girls get quickly and safely to school through our SchoolCyle program,” said Melissa Kilby, Girl Up Co-Executive Director.

Different programs across the country have demonstrated that women are more comfortable biking with a friend; That's why BIKETOWN is encouraging seasoned women cyclists in Portland to share the GIRLUP18 code with a friend who has not ridden bike share in a while or ever.

Follow along on Instagram as local women share their "Why bikes?" stories throughout the month.

As urban biking becomes more prevalent, there still is a marked gender disparity in who rides. Only a quarter of all bike trips are taken by women in the United States.

The gap closes slightly when looking at bike share ridership, with one-third of bike share members nationally identifying as female. However in Portland, over one third of all bicyclists are women and forty percent of BIKETOWN members are female.

While these local figures are markedly better than the national picture, more must be done to create spaces where women feel comfortable exploring their city on two wheels and achieve true parity.

Image via BIKETOWN