By Melissa Neiman, Money Talks News
As spring slowly gives way to summer and temperatures begin to heat up, bicyclists everywhere are heading out to their garages, tuning up their wheels and hitting the pavement or trails.
A 2015 survey commissioned by PeopleForBikes found that at the time, 103 million Americans — 34% of all Americans over age 2 — rode a bicycle each year,
Few forms of exercise are as fun or relaxing as a long bike ride. Cycling is the perfect way to boost both your physical and emotional health. It’s also a wonderful way to boost your bank account balance.
Following are five ways that your trusty two-wheel ride can make or save you money this summer.
1. Commute to work
When Claes Bell was an editor at Bankrate, he commuted on two wheels for nearly five years. In a Bankrate article, he wrote that he and his wife saved a bundle by becoming a one-car family:
“According to my calculations, over that period we saved around $7,219, which helped us accomplish financial goals like improving our home and building an emergency fund.”
2. Work as a courier or delivery person
If you love to ride, you may want to consider becoming a bicycle courier. Companies like Postmates hire couriers to deliver things on demand to customers.
Although you can use various forms of transportation to deliver orders — as long as you get there fast — you’ll save gas money and pocket more cash by pedaling to and from destinations instead of driving.
3. Rent out your bike
Not planning on pedaling for a few days? Sure, you can let your bike sit in the garage when you aren’t using it. Or, you can earn some extra green by renting your bike to those in need.
Spinlister is a global ride share service, essentially an Airbnb for bicycles — as well as snowboards and surfboards, among other nonmotorized rides. You list your bike “for rent” on the website. Spinlister keeps 17.5% of the rent you earn. You get the rest.
So, rent your bike at $20 an hour for one hour, and you’ll earn $16.50.
4. Use your bike for errands
The next time you have a bunch of errands to run, opt for two wheels instead of four. This can net you a lot of green in the long run, according to the blog Mr. Money Mustache:
“Let’s start with the bare minimum: Any mileage you put on your bike instead of your car saves you about 50 cents per mile in gas, depreciation, and wear and maintenance. From this savings alone, doing a couple of bike errands per day (4 miles) in place of car errands will add up to $10,752 over 10 years.”
Plus, think about all the health and environmental benefits.
5. Cancel your gym membership
Why dish out all that dough for a fancy gym membership when you can buy a bike and reap similar — or even better — benefits for a fraction of the price? According to the cycling website I Love Bicycling:
“As anyone with a gym membership can tell you, gyms are expensive. At least with an exercise routine that involves biking, you can pay a one-time fee for the bike and get several years out of that purchase before the bike wears down. … In the long run, this will save you money on gym memberships or exercise equipment.”
