The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) for Washington, D.C., recently relaunched its successful District E-Bike Incentive Program that helps residents – particularly low-income residents – purchase an e-bike using a voucher worth as much as $1,500. The $250,000 program also helps support bicycle businesses within the city, the agency said.
[Above photo by DDOT]
The application window will only be open to District residents enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Medicaid, or the DC Healthcare Alliance.
Applicants can apply between February 1 and February 21 to receive a voucher of up to $1,500 toward an electric bicycle or e-bike, helmet, and a bicycle lock to be redeemed at select authorized bike retailers. Voucher recipients will be randomly selected once the application window closes.
Sharon Kershbaum. Photo by DDOT.
“This program has been a tremendous success, helping over 600 residents access an affordable and sustainable transportation option,” noted Sharon Kershbaum, DDOT’s director, in a statement.
“By making e-bikes more attainable, we’re not only improving mobility and equity for our communities, DDOT is helping to reduce congestion and emissions citywide,” she added. “This program is a key part of our commitment to creating a cleaner, healthier, and more connected Washington, DC.”
In July 2025, DDOT helped kick off a pilot project to support the use of e-bikes for mobile application-based food delivery across the District of Columbia; home to the nation’s capital.
That year-long pilot is testing the feasibility of using e-bikes for app-based food delivery and to see how DDOT can support this shift long term. The pilot is funded by the Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator or LACI through their City Climate Innovation Challenge Program; a program that aims to support a group of cities in transitioning to zero-emission delivery.
The pilot will support two groups of participants – each for a six-month time period – with e-bikes suitable for food delivery and access to safe and reliable battery charging. To encourage food delivery workers to participate in the pilot, battery charging cabinets will be installed at convenient locations for quick and easy swapping, and the e-bikes will be highly subsidized with the option to own the e-bike at the end of the pilot.
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