Best of Benefits: Bike and Scooter Rentals

In Jawnt’s 2024 State of Commuter Benefits Survey, we asked over 400 employers which benefits they offered to employees, and an impressive 27% shared they already offer bike share passes or memberships. Additionally, 15% of surveyed employers said they offered e-scooter passes or memberships, an interesting result of changing commuter habits. 

Providing micromobility benefits to employees can take many different forms. We’re here to help you understand what’s out there, while focusing on an often overlooked benefit: bike and scooter rentals.

Whether it’s a monthly Unagi monthly scooter rental or a Ridepanda e-bike subscription, offering micromobility rental options can be a cost-effective, carbon-friendly way to get employees out of cars and onto two wheels.

Let’s walk through some of the basics.

Bike and scooter sharing vs. rental for commuters

Before digging in further, it’s worth making the distinction between bike and scooter sharing programs vs. bike and scooter rental programs:

• Sharing programs, like Philly’s Indego or SF’s Bay Wheels, allow riders to check out a two-wheeled ride for short commutes across town. You’ve probably seen them around town in the form of branded docking stations or standalone bikes and scooters that unlock on demand using an app.
  

• Rental, membership, and subscription services, like Unagi or Ridepanda, let riders rent their own e-bike or scooter for a monthly fee, typically with maintenance and theft protection included. Some of these may also include lease-to-own programs, where employees can eventually own their ride after a set period of payments.

While both models offer flexibility and convenience without the full commitment of ownership, rental programs are ideal for commuters who want daily, reliable access and the freedom to ride beyond a sharing program’s coverage area. They provide a practical, low-friction entry point for folks looking to make biking or scooting part of their regular routine.

Why offer bike and scooter rentals as an employee benefit?

The impacts of including these options in your commuter benefits package are multifold. For employers, it expands access to reliable transportation without needing to build more parking, and can help meet sustainability goals by shifting commutes away from gas-powered vehicles.

It can also support equity goals by providing alternatives to car ownership, while boosting employee health and wellness with increased physical activity and decreased commute stress.

Pairing your company’s transit benefit with a bike or scooter rental creates a symbiotic relationship. Employees gain more flexibility in how they get to work, whether it's bridging the last mile from a train stop (a frequent barrier to the car-free commute) or switching gears when plans change (missed the bus? time to scoot!). 

No matter the use, this benefit is a win-win: employers reduce parking demand and emissions, and employees gain a convenient, healthy, and often joyful way to commute.

How do employers roll out bike and scooter rental benefits?

Interested in exploring these options in your workplace? There are a few paths:

• Partner directly with providers like Unagi, Ridepanda, or Superpedestrian to subsidize employee subscriptions. Some offer enterprise pricing or commuter-focused plans.
  
• Offer a commuter stipend that covers rentals, either through a general transportation wallet or pre-tax commuter benefits (where allowed).
  
• Work with local transit management authorities (TMAs) or cities that offer discounted memberships to public bike and scooter programs.
  
• Integrate rentals into your existing benefits platform to make it easy for employees to enroll and manage their commuter benefits all in one place.

How Jawnt can help

Jawnt can help you offer bike and scooter rentals as part of a well-rounded commuter benefits package. We’ll research which services are available in your area, work with local providers, and integrate memberships or discounts into a unified transportation platform so employees can access everything in one place.

Bike and scooter rentals aren't just a passing phase—they’re a practical, scalable way to improve your commuter benefits and meet the needs of today’s workforce.

Want to bring more flexible commuting options to your team? Let’s talk!