Portland now officially holds the Guinness World Record for largest electric bike ride, more than doubling the previous record set in Seattle.
On Sunday, July 19, more than 1,000 Portlanders—1,060, to be specific—participated in a large electric bike ride along the waterfront, and helped secure a world record in the process. The ride was held in honor of the 10-year anniversary of Portland’s bike share program, Biketown, which operates a fully electric bicycle fleet.
The ride demonstrated Portland’s love for e-bikes, which have become an increasingly popular mode of transportation in recent years.
“Our e-bike community is growing every day. We wanted to be able to show that today and bring folks together in support of people finding new ways to get around,” Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) Director Millicent Williams told the Mercury after the ride. “It’s not just about the world record, it really is about changing behavior, getting people excited about doing something different and new, getting people to not be afraid about trying something different and new.”
The friendly competition with Seattle didn’t hurt, either.
PBOT says Biketown has facilitated more than 3.9 million rides since its inception in 2016. The bike share program initially launched with a fleet of regular (not electric) bikes, and went fully electric in 2020. As popular as the program is, it has faced criticism for its high prices—for those who don’t pay a $99 dollar annual membership fee, the bikes cost $0.35 per minute, plus a $1 unlock fee. Members pay $0.15 per minute and aren’t charged to unlock the bikes. Biketown has also limited some of the benefits of its reduced-fare program.
Biketown’s e-bikes were available to rent for free Sunday in honor of the program’s anniversary.
Still, the program remains popular. But it’s not the city’s only e-bike program—in April, the Portland Clean Energy Community Benefits Fund (PCEF) launched its electric bike rebate program. So far, the program has given out 1,092 rebates for people to purchase regular and cargo e-bikes, with more set to be allocated soon. The initiative provides awards of $1,600 for standard e-bikes and $2,350 for cargo bikes, with rebate recipients required to earn at or below 60 percent the area median income.
The e-bike rebate program is meant to help “make commuting more affordable for low-income households, support healthier communities, improve transportation access, and help the city reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” according to PCEF Transportation Decarbonization Program Manager Seetha Ream-Rao.
Sunday’s record-breaking e-bike ride was an opportunity to show that the bikes are fun, too.
“I haven’t seen a frown yet,” Williams said of the participants.
