Recently added statistics
- Active Living Research published this new research brief on active transportation, physical activity, and health among children
- Check out the comprehensive new research compilation from the Safe Routes to School National Partnership
- In Portland, OR, 2008 total traffic fatalities were the lowest in recorded history, with only 20 total fatalities, none of them cyclists. 2008 car, pedestrian, and cyclist fatalities were all at all-time lows. - Ciy of Portland, 2009, 2008 Fatality Summary
- Between 2007 and 2008, overall bicycle use in Portland, Oregon increased 28%. - City of Portland Office of Transportation, 2008, Portland Bicycle Counts 2008
- According to a field study by the city of Portland, while bicyclists come to a complete stop at stop signs only 7 percent of the time, motorists stop completely only 22 percent of the time. - "Hey, Oregon, is that an Idaho stop or a California stop?", Rose, J., The Oregonian, April 8, 2009
- In the Washington, D.C., region, an increasing number of daily trips are made for reasons other than commuting to work. Today, one-fifth of all daily trips are for commuting to work, down from one-quarter in 1994 and one-third in 1968. Non-commute trips also tend to be shorter than the median commute, averaging less than four miles compared to 9.3 miles. - National Capital Transportation Planning Board Survey, 2009, in "Drivers taking more trips beyond daily commute," Weir, K., Washington Examiner, April 13, 2009
- According to a survey of Portland, OR, residents, the top three most desired next steps for the city include "increase and improve bike lanes" and "increase car-free streets & zones". - City of Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability, 2009, Central Portland Plan Community Survey Results Summary Report
- A 40% obese population requires 19% more food energy, resulting in an extra 0.4-1.0 Giga tonnes of CO2 emissions per year (for a population of 1 billion). - Edwards, P., and I. Roberts, 2009, Population adiposity and climate change, International Journal of Epidemiology
- After a bike and pedestrian lane was installed on a South Carolina bridge, 67% of users indicated that their activity levels had increased since the opening of the lane, and 10% are using the bridge to commute to work. - McCarthy, D., 2009, "Wonder’s Way Bike Pedestrian Pathway on the Arthur Ravenel, Jr. Bridge: A Successful Model for Facilitating Active Living in Lowcountry South Carolina"
- Despite the near doubling of cyclists in London between 2001 and 2005, there has been no increase in the number of pedestrians injured in collisions with cyclists. - CTC, 2006, "Livingstone's 'Share the Road' campaign is based on myths not facts, says CTC"
- The average American household spends more on transportation than on clothing, health care, and entertainment combined. - Bureau of Labor Statistics in "The Costs of Owning a Car," Motavalli, J., The New York Times, 18 March, 2009
- Regular exercise reduces depression and improves self-esteem in overweight children. - Petty, K., et al., 2008, Exercise effects on depressive symptoms and self-worth in overweight children: A randomized controlled trial, Journal of Pediatric Psychology
- Through improvements in health, reductions in congestion, and by enhancing the ambient environment, a 50% increase in the number of trips by bicycle in England would generate benefits worth £1.3 billion by 2015. - Cycling England, 2008, in Bike for All, "It pays to invest in bikes, Cycling England tells councils"
- A £10,000 investment in cycling infrastructure takes just one additional regular cyclist to recoup its cost. A £100,000 investment takes 11 additional regular cyclists. - Cycling England, 2008, in Bike for All, "It pays to invest in bikes, Cycling England tells councils"
- Traffic congestion on major urban U.S. roads decreased 30 percent from 2007 to 2008. Ninety-nine of the 100 largest U.S. cities experienced decreases in congestion. - INRIX, 2009, "INRIX National Traffic Scorecard reveals startling 30 percent decrease in traffic congestion in 2008"
- 48% of Dutch HR managers report that their organization promotes cycling to work. - TNO, 2009, "Reduced sickness absence in regular commuter cyclists can save empoyers 27 million euros"
- The more often an employee cycles and the longer the distance traveled, the lower the rate of absenteeism. - TNO, 2009, "Reduced sickness absence in regular commuter cyclists can save empoyers 27 million euros"
- A study from the Netherlands determined that employers could save 27 million euros by encouraging employees to cycle to work more. - TNO, 2009, "Reduced sickness absence in regular commuter cyclists can save empoyers 27 million euros"
- Cyclists are exposed to less pollution than taxi or bus passengers. - Kaur, S., et al., 2006, Exposure visualisation of ultrafine particle counts in a transport microenvironment, Atmospheric Environment, 40, 386-398
- Kids who ride a school bus inhale up to a million times more vehicle emissions than the average person outside the bus. - Marshall, J., and E. Behrentz, 2005, Vehicle self-pollution intake fraction: Children's exposure to school bus emissions, Environmental Science and Technology, 39, 2559-2563
- The Virginia Creeper Trail generates $1.59 million in annual spending, supporting 27 new full-time jobs. - United States Department of Agriculture, 2004, in Trails and Economic Development, 2007, Rails-to-Trails Conservancy
- Bicycle facilties are most effective in highly-accessible urban areas where a large number of commute trips can take place across short distances. - Douma and Cleaveland, 2008, The impact of bicycle facilities on commute mode share, Minnesota Department of Transportation research report 2008-33
- Land use plans that include non-automobile transportation improvements and more comprehensive policies to guide development are positively associated with both transportation- and leisure-related physical activity. - Aytu, S., et al., 2008, The sociodemographics of land use planning: relationships to physical activity, accessibility, and equity, Health & Place, 14, 367-85
- Fifth-grade students who regularly bike or walk to school accumulate 3% more minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity per weekday, or about an additional 24 minutes/day. - Sirard, J., et al., 2005, Physical activity and active commuting to elementary school, Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 37, 2062-9
- Youths who cycle or walk to school are more likely to cycle or walk to other activities. - Sjolie, A., and F. Thuen, 2002, School journeys and leisure activities in rural and urban adolescents in Norway, Health Promotion International, 17, 21-30
- Urban adolescents cycle or walk to regular activities more often than rural adolescents. - Sjolie, A., and F. Thuen, 2002, School journeys and leisure activities in rural and urban adolescents in Norway, Health Promotion International, 17, 21-30
- Adolescents who bike or walk at least 8 km weekly to regular activities are less likely to suffer from lower back pain. - Sjolie, A., 2003, Active or passive journeys and low back pain in adolescents, European Spine Journal, 12, 581-8
- Youths who regularly bike or walk to leisure-time activities have better low back strength, low back extension, hip flexion, and exension than those who ride a school bus. - Sjolie, A., 2000, Access to pedestrian roads, daily activities, and physical performance of adolescents, Spine, 25, 1965-72
- Communities with more parks have significantly higher levels of bicycling and walking for transportation. - Zlot, A., and T. Schmid, 2005, Relationships among community characteristics and walking and bicycling for transportation or recreation, American Journal of Health Promotion, 19, 314-7
- Boys who report having many peers to hang out with locally are more likely to cycle for transportation and recreation. - Carver, A., et al., 2005, How do perceptions of local neighborhood relate to adolescents' walking and cycling, American Journal of Health Promotion, 20, 139-47
- Workers whose commutes are shortest and go through the most connected streets are the most likely to bike or walk to work. - Badland, H., et al., 2008, Travel behavior and objectively measured urban design variables: associations for adults traveling to work, Health & Place, 14, 85-95
- In a California study, children who passed by completed Safe Routes to School projects were more likely to show increases in active travel to school compared to children who didn't pass projects (15% vs 4%). - Boarnet, M, et al., 2005, Evaluation of the California Safe Routes to School legislation: urban form changes and children's active transportation to school, American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 28, 134-40
- Americans spend more on transportation than any other category except housing. On average, 18% of household expenditures are for transportation. - U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, and Department of Transportation, 2009, Pocket Guide to Transportation 2009
- The U.S. transportation sector is almost entirely dependent on petroleum as an energy source. Nearly two-thirds of the petroleum used in the U.S. is imported. - U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, and Department of Transportation, 2009, Pocket Guide to Transportation 2009
- Workers who are inactive are less likely to try biking or walking to work than those who are already physically active. - Merom, D., et al., 2008, Predictors of initiating and maintaining active commuting to work using transport and public health perspectives in Australia, Preventive Medicine, 47, 342-346
- The majority of bicycle-vehicle crashes are not a result of environmental factors, eg. darkness, fog, or rain. - Schramm, A., et al., 2008, How much does disregard of road rules contribute to bicycle-vehicle collisions? in Proceedings of high rish road users- motivating behaviour change: what works and what doesn't work? National Conference of the Australian College of Road Safety and the Travelsafe Committee of the Queensland Parliament
- 2.8% of US high school students bike to school at least 1 day per week. High schoolers who participate in physical education 1 to 4 days per week or never have an adult at home after school are more likely to bike or walk to school. - Evenson, K., et al., 2003, Statewide prevalence and correlates of walking and bicycling to school, Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, 157, 887-892
- Fourth grade boys who bike or walk to school have lower BMIs and body fat than non-active commuters. Kids who actively commute to school are also more likely to remain at a healthy weight. - Rosenberg, D., et al., 2006, Active transportation to school over 2 years in relation to weight status and physical activity, Obesity, 14, 1771-6
- 30-60 minutes of daily physical activity such as biking to work is associated with low blood pressure in women and low hypertension in both genders. - Hu, G., et al., 2002, Commuting, leisure-time physical activity, and cardiovascular risk factors in China, Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 34, 234-8
- Kids who bike or walk to recreation sites (parks, playgrounds, etc.) use them more often. The safer it is to bike or walk to play sites, the more likely it is that kids will bike or walk there. - Grow, H., et al., 2008, Where are youth active? Roles of proximity, active transport, and built environment, Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 40, 2071-2079
- Children from low-income and minority households, particularly blacks and Hispanics, are more likely to bike or walk to school than whites or higher-income students. - McDonald, N., 2008, Critical factors for active transportation to school among low-income and minority students: Evidence from the 2001 National Household Travel Survey, American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 34, 341-344
- Youth who bike or walk to school have less excess weight and body fat than those who take a bus, car, or motorcycle. - Silva, K., and A. Lopes, 2008, Excess weight, arterial pressure and physical activity in commuting to school: Correlations, Archives of Brazilian Cardiology, 91, 84-91
- A one percent decrease in the use of automobiles can decrease obesity by 0.4%. - Samimi, A., et al., 2008, Effects of transportation and built environment on general health and obesity, Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, 14, 67-71
- Young children (ages 5-14) with mothers who commute to work in the morning are less likely to bike or walk to school. - McDonald, N., 2008, Household interactions and children's school travel: the effect of parental work patterns on walking and biking to school, Journal of Transport Geography, 16, 324-331
- In a survey of visitors to Portland, OR, 78% said that the city's bike-friendliness was a factor in their decision to visit there. - Portland Bicycle Maps and Information Survey, 2009, City of Portland Bureau of Transportation, Transportation Options Division, reported via BikePortland.org
- In a survey of recent transplants to Portland, OR, 62% said that the city's bike-friendliness was a factor in their decision to move there. - Portland Bicycle Maps and Information Survey, 2009, City of Portland Bureau of Transportation, Transportation Options Division, reported via BikePortland.org
- Competitive road cyclists report safer driving behavior than drivers who have no cycling experience. - Martha, C., and P. Delhomme, 2008, Risk comparative judgment while driving a car among competitive road cyclists and non-cyclists, Transportation Research Part F: Traffic Psychology and Behaviour
- Children who ride a bike two or more times a week are less likely to be overweight. - Dudas, R., and M. Crocetti, 2008, Association of bicycling and childhood overweight status, Ambulatory Pediatrics, 8, 392-395
- Bicycling is the most popular outdoor activity for American youth. In 2008, Americans ages 6 to 17 went on 1.15 billion bicycling outings, averaging 74 outings per bicyclist. - Outdoor Foundation, 2008, Outdoor Recreation Participation Report 2008
- Bicycling is the second most popular outdoor activity in America. In 2008, Americans ages 6 and older went on 2.62 billion bicycling outings, averaging 62 outings per bicyclist. - Outdoor Foundation, 2008, Outdoor Recreation Participation Report 2008
- The likelihood of children walking or biking to school is positively associated with shorter trips, male gender, higher land use mix, and presence of street trees. - Larsen, K., et al., 2008, The influence of the physical environment and sociodemographic characteristics on children's mode of travel to and from school, American Journal of Public Health
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