How Salt Lake City’s new e-bike incentive program works
Jul 10, 2024, 9:00 PM
Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall speaks during the event where Salt Lake City announced the launch of its e-bike voucher program held at Washington Square Park in Salt Lake City on Tuesday. (Isaac Hale, Deseret News).
(Isaac Hale, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY — About a decade ago, before Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall had been elected to the Salt Lake City Council, she remembers standing next to former Mayor Ted Wilson during the launch of the city’s bike share program.
He talked about the joy bikes provide, and reminisced about the freedom he felt riding a bike for the first time as a child.
On Jeff Caplan’s afternoon news show: Salt Lake City is launching a new e-bike incentive program. The city hopes it’ll make it easier for people to purchase an e-bike and stop using a car as much. Catherine Wyffels, SLC Air Quality & Environmental Manager joins the show to explain.
“People’s mouths started smiling,” Mendenhall said, reflecting on that moment. “Bikes are this connected experience across cultures, across the planet, and generations.”
The rise of e-bikes
Now, electric bicycles appear to be the future of bikes. Nationwide, e-bike sales soared from a little more than 250,000 in 2018 to over 1 million in 2022, according to the U.S. Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
They even have the potential to replace some automobile trips, Mendenhall said, especially as the city builds more bike-friendly paths like the 9-Line Trail. Thus, it can help reduce road congestion and improve air quality in the growing city.
E-bike program in Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City residents can apply now until the end of July 16.
Winners will be selected by the end of July, which is when they will receive a voucher worth $300-$1,300.
The voucher’s amount will depend on the applicant’s income and the bike model they are purchasing.
Read the full story and more from Carter Williams on KSL.com.
