City of Tampa offers residents e-bike vouchers in hopes of easing traffic, reducing carbon emissions

E-bikes are fun to ride, environmentally friendly, and come with a hefty price tag, but the city of Tampa is making it easier to residents to enjoy these two-wheelers.  

Residents can register for an electronic bike voucher through April 14.

Cargo e-bikes can cost more than $4,000 and the vouchers range from $500 to $2,000. The higher-valued vouchers are for residents who meet certain income qualifications.

"The main goal of this program is to offset our carbon emissions as a city, reduce traffic, make sure that people are getting around safely and more efficiently within our city, and also making sure that both vehicles and bicyclists are prepared for a future of sustainable, reliable, transportation," said Austin Britt, the city of Tampa’s park and planning coordinator.

The city of Tampa is offering vouchers for e-bikes.

The city of Tampa is offering vouchers for e-bikes. 

There are four different vouchers:

  • Standard eBike Voucher
  • Standard eCargo Bike Voucher
  • IQ eBike Voucher
  • IQ eCargo Bike Voucher

Applicants have to answer several questions and make some promises to get a voucher.

"Some of the pledges required for this program is that the individual owns the bike for a year. They complete the basic maintenance on it for a year, just to make sure that the bike is operating at peak capacity. And they also have to participate in three surveys over the course of a year and that’s just for us as a city to get some data on the effectiveness of the program and to learn how to grow it and be better in the future," Britt said.

LINK: For more information on how to apply, click here