Novo Nordisk strikes gold with bike-friendly best practices

Novo Nordisk is BizCycle’s first gold level bicycle-friendly business. Specializing in diabetes care equipment and medications, Novo Nordisk recognizes the connection between bicycling and the prevention of chronic disease associated with physical inactivity. In addition, while certification applies only to the Seattle facility, the company headquarters are in Denmark, a county well-known for its bike culture.

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Novo Nordisk cyclists out for a ride

The local Novo Nordisk facility located in South Lake Union has an obvious bike culture as well. Twenty percent of staff regularly bicycle to work. Those active commutes are supported by showers, lockers and even a boot dryer. Details like warm, dry toes for the ride home can be critical to the decision to bike year-round. For those commuters whose bikes need a little love to get them out on two wheels when the weather warms or just in time for Bike Month, the company sponsors a Spring Bike Clinic  where mechanics help employees get their bicycles in ride-ready shape.

If amenities and programming aren't incentive enough to commute to work by bike, Novo Nordisk employees receive $100 to R.E.I for every month they regularly bicycle. By contrast, car parking costs $80 per month. To track employee transportation trends, Novo Nordisk measures bicycling along with all commute modes weekly and reports the trends to staff on a quarterly basis. Something must be working--the number of bicyclists reported has increased since 2009.

What’s more, Novo Nordisk recognizes that internal support for its bicyclists won't increase bicycle commuting if employees can’t access the workplace by bike. Located at Fairview Ave. N and Mercer Street, the facility is at the heart of the Mercer Corridor Project and representatives from Novo Nordisk sit on the project advisory committee. With only so much availability for parking, the company actively advocates for bicycle improvements in the corridor.

All of this spectacular work earned Novo Nordisk’s Seattle facility a final total of 37 out of BizCycle’s 50 possible credits, surpassing the 35 credit minimum to achieve gold level certification. Congratulations and well done!

To learn more about BizCycle certification or how you can bring bike-friendly best practices to your workplace, visit bizcycle.cascade.org or email bizcycle@cascadebicycleclub.org.