NBG Lodging Discount Program and How it Will Stimulate Downtown Cycling
In the order to make our organization distinct and to set it apart from all of the other well-meaning clubs, organizations and associations, etc. that are out there, we will make it possible for our members to stay downtown in all of our Anchor Cities affordably. In order to do this, this will become the money making goal of our organization. Once we have our PR Firm producing the results we discuss in the chapter we have written about them in NBG Blueprint - Interconnecting America with a Network of Coast to Coast Bicycle Villages, our resources, as we will show you, will be devoted to making it possible for our cyclists to enjoy downtown America at hostel prices.
Once our Downtown Greenways are put in place, by making our Anchor Cities friendly to human powered propulsion, we will be able to use our PR Firm to sell them as tourist destinations similar to those found in exotic far away lands. They will show bike travelers, that they are an affordable way to escape the limits of the familiar while they learn about all that is new and exciting here, in their own country. Instead of feeling called to visit those vacation paradises found in travel magazines, our PR firm will have made them aware of the wonder that can be found here in America, here in our NBG Anchor Cities.
Since card-carrying NBG Members will be able to stay the night affordably at the top hotel accommodations each of our Anchor Cities has to offer, this will allow them to then spend money on the discounted food, shopping and entertainment that our NBG merchants offer. This will have the effect of making our downtowns the places to be. Instead of having to go to far away countries for the pleasure they seek, NBG population centers will become attractive to them. Exploring the homefront will become the new cool as our cyclists also learn about all of the people and places that make America tick.
We will be able to help get lower priced accommodations for our cyclists by subsidizing the money hoteliers need to charge. We will be able to offset the expense of overnight stays with revenues from earmarked portions of NBG Membership fees, corporate sponsorships, and POI map advertising as well as from the Fundraising Programs we foresee (our yearly National Mayors' Ride Festival/Gateway Fest in Indy, Checkout Charity - rounding sales up to the nearest dollar, NBG Day at Whole Foods and other merchants, etc). Because increased bicycling addresses pollution problems, as well as climate change, there will also be funding available from grant monies, even the Federal Government.
By making room nights more affordable for cyclists who come from distances near and far, there are victories on many levels. To begin, bike riders are limited in how long they can stay in our cities by the amount of sunlight they need to see and be seen. If they can stay the night affordably, those who visit from nearby cities, will not have to clear out of town when darkness begins to set in.
NBG Members will have a place to clean up after a day of riding, before they explore the town or spend the night on it. This will allow them to enjoy eating and drinking establishments when darkness sets in. Low priced lodging will also give them a shower and place where they can just relax after a day of two-wheel exploration.
For those long-haul cyclists who are just passing through our Anchor Cities, they can use the shower facilities at our lodging purveyors to get themselves cleaned up. Toward that end, we can pay the hotels to set aside and maintain a certain number of day use rooms for the long distance bike traveler. During the two hour period of time we will ask them to provide, a laundry service and WIFI can also be made available.
For those staying overnight, whether on the road or within the region, our plan, as we keep saying, is to make it possible for hotels to set the charge at the same rate that hostels charge. In doing so, as we keep trying to underscore, our cyclists will have more money to spend on food and entertainment possibilities. Once this is the case, our members will then be inclined to do business with those merchants who support the NBG with discounts for them.
As our cyclists cause cash registers to ring, this will also help to address the traffic congestion problems that automobile trips bring. Because the evening hours will cause most of our NBG hotel guests to be on foot, this will also keep their activity closer to the accommodations providers. Because this is so, our cities will become a lot more peaceful in the evening hours.
Since our members will not be ravaging their downtowns in automobiles, our Anchor City downtowns will not only feel safer, they will be safer. Nor will our members bring the trouble associated with drinking and driving. There is also the added benefit of noise abatement. Downtowns will feel more like small villages, instead of roaring race car factories.
When our PR Firm points out that our lodging and merchant discount programs have caused bicycles to displace the number of cars on the road within the downtown city confines, it will pique the interest of those who have not yet joined. When our PR Firm circulates stories about how because of the prevalence of cyclists, violence and car accidents have decreased, while the city’s merchants report increased sales, becoming an NBG member will feel like exercising one's duty as a citizen of good standing. When our PR Firm reminds people that a different city has become the result of making it possible for more bicyclists to be downtown, commerce officials on and off our route will know this is so because of how our lodging and merchant discount programs complement one another.
Because this will also cause Americans to take an interest in their fellow countrymen, it will help to heal some of the divisions that presently keep us apart. As they learn about their fellow American brothers and sisters, there will be a greater understanding and empathy for those whose geography is different from their own. As people moving about under their own power slow down the pace of our cities, we get to know one another. And as we do, we come to realize our own needs, wants and desires are all so similar.