I'm curious what other community programs are doing (can't get to bike bike this year)...
We give away a free bike (not complete) after someone volunteers 2 hours and takes a 'bikewell class' (covers safety, laws and repair). We got a $10,000 city grant for helping low and moderate income people, and they really liked the emphasis on creating bike commuters, not just giving away free bikes. For 9 years we ran the shop like a festival- people filled the shop everyday and built bikes and rode them away (over 3,000). This change we made has worked well- it has created just enough structure without losing the grass roots feeling.
Who else does a program like this? (I'd happily send anyone the grant we filled out- I think most cities have funding like this. Though I think it's best to minimize any govt funding.) -Bob g.