The Hub: Real-World Bike Services

Facebook

Challenge

How does the largest social networking company connect employees to real-world bike and commute services?

Solution

Build and staff a full service bike shop-slash-transit hub-slash-community space, where employees can get everything they need to leave their cars at home.

When Facebook outgrew its digs in downtown Palo Alto and began designing its new home at a huge site in Silicon Valley formerly occupied by Sun Microsystems, it wanted to prioritize alternative transportation to stay within their trip caps and limited parking.

The new site was planned as a mini city, to feel like Palo Alto. Early in the design phase, the tech giant earmarked a building in the center of campus as a “transit center & bike shop.” But it wasn’t quite sure what exactly to do with the space.

Designing places that foster bike culture is something that Bikes Make Life Better does really well. We partnered with Facebook to design, build and operate a bike shop that encourages employees to ride.

That’s how the The Hub came to be the spot Facebook employees love to visit, whether they’re dropping off their bike to be fixed, in need of a spare tube from the bike parts vending machine, or attending a bike maintenance class.

Results

Bikes Make Life Better runs all bike operations from The Hub, which have grown substantially as Facebook has expanded. We run Facebook’s campus bikeshare program, intern bike program and loaner bike program – in total, over 1,300 bikes. Staff organizes and leads monthly Bike-to-Work Day rides that come from all over the Bay Area, teaches classes, repairs employee bikes, and provides bike kitchen help in the DIY area of the shop.

Need help designing a bike facility or adding bike infrastructure to your property? Bikes Make Life Better has helped many companies design spaces meant for people with bikes, from classy End of Trip facilities to simple bike racks or parking options that are easy to install in existing spaces.