HUB Announces 2012 Bike Friendly Business Award Winners

BC Hydro, ING DIRECT, Vancouver Airport Authority (YVR) and Harbour Centre Recognized for Leadership

HUB: Your Cycling Connection is proud to announce the winners of the 2012 Bike Friendly Business Awards - an annual celebration of businesses that are encouraging employees and customers to cycle by providing active commuting facilities, incentives and education programs. ING DIRECT, BC Hydro, Vancouver Airport Authority and Harbour Centre Building Ltd. earned top honours this year for their leadership and commitment to making active commuting more attractive and accessible for employees and clients.

Awards were given out in two categories: Most Bike Friendly Building, which focuses on the physical amenities provided to accommodate active commuting; and Most Bike Friendly Workplace, which focuses more on employee incentives, health-promotion & sustainability programs and cycling education.  Recipients are chosen based on the Bikeability Assessment criteria, the regional standard developed by HUB that is designed to measure how well an organization or building accommodates cyclists or cycling.

MOST BIKE-FRIENDLY BUILDING CATEGORY

Winner: BC Hydro
Runner Up: Harbour Centre Complex Ltd.

BC Hydro took top honours in the Most Bike Friendly Building category by providing an impressive range of active commuting facilities for more than 1,000 employees including secure bike parking and storage; shower and changing facilities; drying racks; lockers and repair stations. In addition, their Lead by Example program actively encourages cycling through sustainable transportation lunch n’ learn workshops; and participation in Commuter Challenge and Bike to Work Week.  BC Hydro even took home the ‘Best in Business’ award during a very rainy Bike to Work Week in Fall 2012, proving that good facilities can help cyclists weather any storm.

The iconic Harbour Centre Complex that that houses the Top of Vancouver restaurant and Vancouver Lookout Observatory as well as Simon Fraser University claimed an honourable mention for its accessibility to cyclists and for providing secure fob-accessible bike storage; changing & shower facilities and on-site repair space to tenants.

“Harbour Centre is pleased to offer these services to our tenants and to the students at SFU.” says Keith Messner, Energy and Sustainability Manager. “We look forward to expanding our facilities in the future, and to help spread the word on the benefits of cycling to work or school.”

MOST BIKE-FRIENDLY WORKPLACE CATEGORY

Winner: ING DIRECT
Runner Up: Vancouver Airport Authority (YVR)

When it comes to embodying the ethos of a bike friendly workplace culture, ING DIRECT goes above and beyond by purchasing bicycles for every employee who does not have one; providing bikes for employees to share; and paying for regular bike maintenance for the entire time an employee works at ING DIRECT.  ING DIRECT also welcomes cycling into its business by allowing customers to park in its space; providing banking promotions to cyclists and hosting public sustainability workshops & events.

“Just as we help Canadians become financially healthy, we also want to do our part to make sure we have a thriving planet to support us.” says Paul Sluimers, ING DIRECT Communications Coordinator. "Biking is a part of our view on sustainability, but it’s about more than reducing our environmental impact. We believe having a bike friendly city will be good for business, ours and others, for people and for the city itself.

Metro Vancouver’s air transportation hub also supports sustainable transportation year-round by providing employees with active commuting/fitness incentives; on-site cycling education workshops and employee resources & community support.

Honourable mention goes out to the following Metro Vancouver businesses who have made great strides towards improving their bikeability: Concert Properties, Polaris Realty (Canada) Limited, Habanero and the Vancouver School Board (VSB).

“Studies have shown that encouraging cycling in the workplace provides a net benefit to businesses and their employees,” says Erin O’Melinn, Executive Director of HUB: Your Cycling Connection. “Employees who bike are proven to be happier, healthier and more productive and businesses who provide health promotion programs & facilities are consistently ranked as more attractive places to work.”

HUB: Your Cycling Connection helps businesses and organizations become more bike friendly through their Bikeability Assessment program and by offering interactive Workplace Cycling Workshops year-round.  Visit our Bike Friendly Business Program webpage for more information.