Page 276 - BWA FEB 2013

276 | Business World Magazine | February 2013
Two years ago, San Antonio created
the first modern-day bike share system in
Texas which has grown rapidly. Mayor Cas-
tro says that additional investments in the
City’s 242 miles of bike routes (and more
than 100 miles of trails) helped secure Bicy-
cling Magazine’s recognition of San Anto-
nio to its list of Top 50 bike-friendly cities in
America.
According to Mary Hammer, the bike
program not only helps address concerns
about alternative transportation, but also
health and wellness, another one of the May-
or’s priorities. San Antonio has already built
some 30 bicycling stations around the city,
and is expected to roll out another dozen by
the end of the year. Beyond offering means
to get around in a healthy way, the program
has helped reduce pollutants arising from au-
tomotive exhaust. The program, in conjunc-
tion with other alternative transportation
initiatives, has reduced miles, which would
have otherwise been driven by cars, in excess
of 20 million miles.
In the realm of alternative transporta-
tion, San Antonio has also facilitated oppor-
tunities for increased usage of electric cars.
This has included a partnership with Hertz
which offers residents opportunity to utilize
an all-electric vehicle while using the down-
town-based program.
San Antonio also provides free down-
town parking for hybrid and electric vehicles
and through the partnership with CPS Ener-
gy more than 130 publically accessible elec-
tric vehicle charging stations can be found
Repairs are made
through San
Antonio Home
Weatherization
initiative