The Net Zero Bicycle
How I tried and failed to offset the carbon footprint of my bike — and why offsetting emissions can be much harder than it seems.
I bought a Trek Domane SL7 road bike in the summer of 2022. Like all new bikes, it came with a thick packet of reading materials. Among the safety warnings and coupons from the local bike shop was a one-page brochure from Trek Cycles explaining that I could offset the carbon footprint of the bicycle just by riding 430 miles (690 km), about the same as biking from New York City (NYC) to Akron, OH.
No problem, I regularly ride about 100 mi (160 km) per week (NYC to Philadelphia). I surpass the carbon-neutral threshold distance every month. Since it’s been over a year and we’re in the off-season, I decided it was a good time to check in and see how much my bike had reduced my emissions.
After a thorough analysis with broad implications beyond just bicycles, I’ve reached a few conclusions:
1) The manufacturing emissions of my bike are not offset and never will be.
2) Maybe that’s OK.
Breaking Even
My new bike is an endurance-oriented light-weight carbon frame road model. I started by verifying Trek’s carbon emissions numbers and…
