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Rachel Pemberton, who works for WA's peak body for bike riding WestCycle, practises what she preaches when it comes to ditching the car and cycling instead.
"I haven't owned a car for about 12 years and it's very possible, and in fact it's actually quite pleasurable," she told Mark Gibson on ABC Radio Perth.
"I really hate getting stuck in traffic jams and I hate parking hassles so it's really nice not to have that in my life.
"I think the more people that actually experience those benefits, the less dependent they become on cars."
However, the WestCycle membership and engagement officer acknowledged that in a sprawling city like Perth, she is in a tiny minority.
Electric bikes take the effort out of cycling, meaning riders can wear their work clothes in the saddle. (ABC News: Kate Leaver)
WestCycle would like to see the state government do much more to encourage more people to hop on two wheels.
One of the measures the peak body advocates for, along with expanded path networks and allowing bikes on trains in peak hour, is extending subsidies to e-bikes, which have an electric motor to assist with pedalling.
"E-bikes are really opening up the opportunity for more and more people to ride a bike," Ms Pemberton said.
"You don't have to wear special clothing for it. You don't have to work up a sweat, that sort of thing.
"It's a good tool for people of all ages and all abilities to be able to get around really easily."
Call for government rebates
E-bikes are not cheap. The most affordable starts at around $1,500 and bikes that can haul a couple of kids and a load of shopping can cost more than $10,000.
In contrast to its stance on e-bikes, the WA government has enthusiastically supported four-wheeled electric vehicles.
A $3,500 rebate scheme for zero-emissions car purchases has already seen more than $28 million paid to 8,210 purchasers.
In the last state budget the scheme's cap was extended to include more than the first 10,000 vehicles and will now run until May 2025.
E-bikes can cost thousands of dollars, depending on size. (Supplied)
Ms Pemberton said she would like to see a similar subsidy for e-bikes, saying such schemes had been shown to work in Queensland and Tasmania where the public was offered between $500 and $1,000 towards the purchase of an e-bike.
She said the take-up was good news for would-be cyclists and drivers.
"There are studies done in Europe that show about 50 per cent of e-bike journeys are replacing a car," she said.
"So it's another car bay that's actually available for people to use and it's one less car on the road causing traffic."
Small proportion of transport spend
Tepi McLaughlin, a research fellow at the University of WA's medical school whose work focuses on boosting cycling rates, said governments needed to increase spending in a host of areas to increase cycling rates.
"We looked at the transport budget and where we spend our funding, we found that less than 2 per cent of [the state's] transport budget goes to walking and cycling," Dr McLaughlin said.
"The majority is going to driving and encouraging us to drive and that just encourages more and more congestion, more and more traffic, more and more parking woes."
He said the data on car journeys in Perth showed that 2.8 million daily trips could have been walked or cycled instead, in less than 15 minutes.
"That's two-thirds of all trips in Perth every day," he said.
Dr McLaughlin said one of the biggest barriers to cycling instead of driving was people reporting that they did not feel safe riding on roads.
"It's about investing in making it safer for people to ride and also feel safer and more pleasant," he said.
He said the government had excellent plans to build a connected cycling network throughout Perth but was not investing enough money to finish it.
"If we continue at the same pace [we are now], it'd take tens and tens of years to complete, possibly even 100 years to complete," he said.
"We're going to be entrenched in having to drive."
Government focused on connections
WA Transport Minister Rita Saffioti said the government was currently focused on building additions to the principal shared path (PSP) network that runs alongside train lines and freeways.
"That's something that's been a focus in particular along the Mitchell Freeway and of course, down to Fremantle," Ms Saffioti said.
Rita Saffioti speaking to cyclists at a Ride to Work Day event in Forrest Place. (ABC News: Rachel Stowers)
She said bike paths connecting to the new Metronet lines and stations were a distinct focus.
"For example, along the Ellenbrook Rail Line, we created a new bridge to make sure that those west of Tonkin Highway can meet the new rail line," she said.
"One of the issues that was raised in relation to some of our older stations is a lack of connectivity. And we're trying to get that right from day one."
Despite the success in Queensland and Tasmania, Ms Saffioti said the government had no immediate plans to introduce a rebate scheme for e-bikes.
"We don't have that here," she said.
"We're always monitoring how we can support cycling, so everything's always under consideration, but we haven't made any of those decisions."