Great Reasons to Bicycle...

Approximately 14,000 people commute to UCSB by bicycle each day school is in session and it's no wonder, considering Santa Barbara's bicycle friendly climate and the network of bicycle routes serving the campus!

• Bicycling has been shown to be the most efficient conversion of energy to locomotion.
• Bicycling is excellent exercise and can improve your health! In fact, a twenty minute bicycle commute, at a moderate speed, can burn 280 calories round trip!
• Reduce the amount of air pollutants your commute contributes. Even if your commute is only five miles each way, your car emits over one hundred pounds of air pollution each year!
• Save money by not paying for a parking permit, not paying for gas for your commute, and reducing wear and tear on your car (if you own one). Your savings in parking expenses alone could total up to $420 per year!
• Get out of the parking "rat race" without losing your freedom to run errands during lunch and leave work according to your own schedule.
• Many bicycle commuters report feeling refreshed and invigorated when they arrive at work.
• Most Americans do not get enough exercise: "Despite common knowledge that exercise is healthful, more than 60 percent of American adults are not regularly active, and 25 percent of the adult population are not active at all" (CDC 1996). That leaves only 15 percent who are getting enough exercise. Incorporating exercise into one's daily routine is necessary to get the regular exercise that health promotion experts advise ("30 minutes of physical activity of moderate intensity [such as brisk walking] on most, if not all, days of the week") (CDC 1996). Cycling for transportation is one way people can get a daily workout without making time for exercise or paying gym fees.)