BUOY

Inspiration

Help realize a bike lane. Invest in your neighborhood. Support local business.

BUOY IS A SIGNAL OF A CHANGING TIDE, a growing swell for positive changes. BUOY SERVES AS A NAVIGATION MARKER for the direction we need to take. BUOY GIVES CAUSE TO BE CHEERFUL AND CONFIDENT that a community can come together to make a difference.

This concept seeks to empower citizens, cyclists, homeowners, and private-businesses to directly contribute to, and reap benefits from implementation of bike facilities.

A web-based application serves as a mechanism for identifying interest among individuals and businesses to invest in local bike infrastructure, and furthers prioritization and implementation based on value capture strategies.

How it works

An interactive mapping tool allows web users to view the Oahu Bike Plan and to mark their particular interest in prioritizing designated bike routes.

Based on a mapped location (where someone works or lives), projected measurable benefits resulting from the future construction of a planned bike route are graphically presented.

A personalized potential return on investment is calculated based on derived benefits from increased property value and/or increased patronage from cyclists.

An web user can decide to contribute according to a calculated assessed amount, relative to the collective shared contribution among neighbors.

A contribution earns the funder notoriety and promotional value as a “bike-friendly business”.

Cyclists can invite businesses to participate, and can leave reviews on linked sites like Yelp and Foursquare.

As promised contributions begin to accumulate, peer pressure and popular support will work to encourage more potential beneficiaries to contribute and commit.

When a threshold total contributions have been made, the planned bike route will enter into “funded” phase ready for construction.

Challenges I ran into

In need of programming assistance.

Accomplishments that I'm proud of

Pretty round concept, with room for layering features. Beneficial to multitude of interests - including public, private

What I learned

Found much supporting evidence for favorable economic impact from investment in bicycle facilities. Learned more about transportation equity, in terms of investments and benefits.

What's next for BUOY - a bike-friendly business application

Explore concept more fully. Make functional. Research and refine data regarding possible costs and ROI.