The human population is leaving a carbon footprint so large it will destroy our earth faster than it should. There are many ways that we could reduce our carbon footprint and one way is to use more bikes instead of cars. Many people know how to ride a bike but we are so busy with our lives today that we hardly ever get to use them. Another reason we don’t ride our bikes more often may simply be because it’s a hassle to try and load your bikes into your car and drive to whatever place you will ride your bike that day.
In my city, we have had a bicycle program called B-cycle. B-cycle is a program that sets up bike stops all over the city where you can rent a bike then go and ride for as long as you want. Because of B-cycle's low cost of $5 per hour and $2 for every extra half hour of riding and its easy accessibility, this program has been a big hit! B-cycle has been in my city for a little more than 4 years now and has been gaining more and more popularity as more people use the bikes. Currently, B-cycle has 31 stations and 225 bikes. This past August, my City's Planning  and Development Department agreed to expand our bike share system to a total of 102 stations and 793 bikes available for anyone to use. Last year alone, the B-cycle users got rid of 576,082 pounds of carbon by riding bikes instead of driving! I believe that if more cities had programs similar to the B-cycle program, we would reduce our Carbon footprint dramatically.
SOURCES:
https://houston.bcycle.com/buzz

Hi my name is Tyler and and I am from the USA.  I really agree to this suggestion.  It is really important to try and ride a bike every once in a while because of the fuels that are burning into the atmosphere.

Now I know what you’re thinking why a scooter? Well scooters are lightweight, cheap, fashionable, fuel efficient, and practical (unless if it snows year round). A lot of people are turned off by vehicles with two wheels and that makes sense, “I want the security of a car”; but smaller vehicles really are safer, you’re less likely to get into an accident and those who do so are foolish. And mopeds are super easy to park, a lot of places will actually let you park for free or have exclusive parking spots. All you have to do is pull in sideways near the front of the parking space so no one runs over your scooter. They have all the same functions as a car like headlights, blinkers, a trunk, mirrors a speedometer, only some of them only have seating for one, which isn’t a big deal as it is intended for fuel efficient personal transport. I am telling you this as a moped fanatic and driver who really enjoys getting one hundred and ten miles to the gallon, and enjoys the  fresh air and thrill of driving a moped.  [suzuki access 125](http://www.thebusinesshouse.org/new-suzuki-access-125)

I agree that riding a bike, scooter, or skateboard can help.  We just have to factor in the variables of distance, convenience, and possibility to do so.  So it is a good idea to get more people to ride these other sorts of vehicles, but how many will really make the change to resort to other means of transportation.

There are a few things I would like to address in this thread. First I would like to talk about the suggested use of scooters as an alternative means of transport in big cities. My main issue with the use of such modes of transportation is safety. It is common sense that being surrounded by a metal shell would be an excellent protective measure, and the data backs this assumption up.  https://academic.oup.com/aje/article/16 … vel#749330 This study in the American Journal of Epidemiology [shows here](//muut.com/u/footprint/s2/:footprint:BULb:screenshot20170924at2.39.01pm.png.jpg) that motorcycles are significantly more dangerous accross all demographics, often more than 50 times so. While motorcycles and scooters are more fuel efficient, I do not think it would be ethical to ignore the serious safety concerns.

My other point of discussion would be rentable bikes in city centers. I am a huge fan of this innovation. Ever since my home city has had these bikes, sponsored by ford, put in it has been so much easier to get around without a car. One issue that these  racks solve that I have not seen mentioned is security. Bike theft is rampart throughout the world, especially in urban areas, and it is so nice to not need to stress about having my bike stolen constantly. I really enjoy riding and have been able to ride much more frequently ever since these racks have been put in, with the added benefit of not having to carry a bulky wheel or lock  with me everywhere I go. One huge design boon is placing the racks right outside of public transportation hubs, seamlessly allowing for the transition from bus or metro to bike.