The Pasig City government on Friday (July 24) installed bike racks in public buildings in the city, as part of its efforts to promote biking as an alternative mode of transportation.

Mayor Vico Sotto said Friday that 60 bike racks were installed at the City Hall, Pasig Mega Market, and at the Gender and Development (GAD) Compound, among other public establishments in the city.

Such areas are only a few of the most visited locations in the city.

According to Sotto, each bike rack costs about P15,000 and can hold up to six bicycles.

“To get an idea of how cheap this is, a carpark building costs at least P600,000 per car space,” the mayor wrote on Twitter. “With building maintenance, a parking space for a car easily costs 300 times more than for a bike.”

Sotto announced in a radio interview on June 7 that the local government would procure about P1 million worth of bike racks, saying they are “more cost efficient” than constructing parking spaces for cars.

Aside from the bike racks, the city government will put up “high priority bicycle corridors” along some streets in Pasig.

Sotto had earlier said that the community quarantine has proved that biking to work is possible here in the country.

“Nakita natin ngayong panahon ng community quarantine, tumaas talaga ang demand para sa mga bisikleta dahil nga limitado ang pampublikong transportation natin (We have seen that during the period of community quarantine, the demand for bicycles has increased significantly because our public transportation is limited,” he said.

“Napatunayan din natin na pwedeng-pwede ang pagbibisikleta, pati ‘yung bike-to-work dito sa Pilipinas (We have also proven that bike riding and bike-to-work is possible here in the Philippines),” he added.

In the early days of the Luzon lockdown, the Pasig City government declared biking an essential form of transportation.