Participation Statistics

Nearly 60% of all bike trips are 1 mile or less.

40% of all trips are 2 miles or less.

In 2009, 1% of all U.S. trips were made by bicycle, an increase of 25% from 2001.

Estimations of the number of Americans who ride bicycles trend around 15% (OIA) to 17% (SGMA). In general:

- 1% of adults ride a bicycle on a given day
- 5.3% ride on a given week
- 16% ride on a given month
- 29% ride in the summer
- 40% ride in a year
- 50% sometimes ride a bicycle, although not necessarily in a given year

More than 85% of Amsterdam residents rode their bikes at least once a week in 2003.

Availability of a bicycle in a household is the strongest single predictor of bicycling for transportation.

A review of 139 studies concluded that substantial increases in bicycling require an integrated package of numerous interventions, including bike-specific infrastructure and pro-bicycle programs, as well as supportive land use planning and restrictions on automobile use.

On average, larger increases in government spending on bike and pedestrian infrastructure are associated with larger increases in the number of bike commuters.

The number of Americans who commuted to work primarily by bike in 2008 increased 14 percent from 2007, 36 percent since 2005, and 43 percent since 2000. For interactive spreadsheets of bike commute share by city or state, visit the League of American Bicyclists.

About 10 percent of Americans say they ride primarily for transportation.

The number of Americans who ride bicycles is greater than all those who ski, golf, and play tennis combined.

0.48% of American workers—more than 650,000 people—use a bike as their main vehicle for commuting.

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.

The average bicycle commute is 7.5 miles each way and takes 30.7 minutes.

Why do people commute by bicycle? According to a survey of 2,400 cyclists:

• 95% ride for health and fitness
• 82% do it for the environment
• 52% bike to avoid congestion
• 46% ride to save money on gasoline
• 34% want to avoid car-parking costs and availability

The average bicycle commuter makes eight one-way trips to work per week.

71% of Americans say they would like to bicycle more than they do now.

The majority of bicycle trips are less than 30 minutes in length, although the average distance varies by purpose:

• Entertainment, recreation, and fitness trips are generally longer, up to 30 or 40 km (18.6-24.9 mi)
• Work trips tend to be around 20 km (12.4 mi)
• Trips for shopping and trail access are shorter, under 10 km (6.2 mi)

Less than half (46%) of Americans 16 and older have regular access to a bicycle.

The #1 reason given for not bicycling is a lack of access to a bicycle.

During the summer of 2002, an estimated 2.5 billion bicycling trips were made by people 16 and older in the U.S.

54% of bicycle commuters commute by bike year-round.

Residents of the most socioeconomically advantaged neighborhoods are more likely to bicycle in leisure time but less likely to cycle for transportation than those from the most disadvantaged neighborhoods.

Bike Pittsburgh has broken down the American Community Survey's bike commuting stats by gender.

In the U.S., men's cycling trips surpass women's by at least 2:1. In the Netherlands, 55% of riders are women. In Germany, 49% of bike trips are made by women.

87% of U.S. competitive cyclists are male, and 12% are female. Most (32%) are 35-44 years old and are from California (17%).

According to a 2006 survey by the Outdoor Industry Foundation, cycling participants are:

• 58% male / 42% female
• 29% ages 16 to 24 / 21% ages 25 to 34 / 23% ages 35 to 44 / 27% ages 45+
• 53% married / 47% unmarried
• 32% household income <$40,000 / 40% $40,000-$79,000 / 28% $80,000

U.S. cyclists who bike frequently have a median income of almost $60,000.

Access to a bicycle rises with household income. According to a government survey of nearly 10,000 Americans:

• just 29% of those with household incomes less than $15,000 had regular access to a bicycle
• 47% with incomes $30,000-$49,000 had access
• 65% with incomes $75,000 or more had access.

In northern Europe there are no significant differences in cycling rates among income classes or sexes.

Bicycling is highest among whites and Hispanics (0.9% of all trips are taken by bike). For whites, bicycles are mostly used for recreation, while for Hispanics, they are typically used to reach the workplace.

The average North American bicycle commuter is a 39-year-old male professional with a household income in excess of $45,000 who rides 10.6 months per year.

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.

In New York City commuter cycling grew 26% between 2008 and 2009 and 45% since 2007. Cycling levels have more than doubled since 2002, and the number of cyclists crossing the Williamsburg Bridge quadrupled between 2000 and 2009. Since 2007, 200 miles of new bicycle routes have been added to the city's on-street bicycle network.

In San Francisco the number of cyclists increased 9% from 2008 to 2009 and 53% from 2006.

In 2009, the number of bicycle trips in Portland, Oregon decreased 5% from 2008. However, the number of trips made by motorists and transit riders also decreased during the same time period.

Between 2008 and 2009, participation in cyclocross races increased 15% in Colorado.

Between 2007 and 2008, the number of USA Cycling-sanctioned bicycling events increased 2.5% to 2,535 events. The number of clubs increased 3.4% to 2,120, and the number of licensees increased 2.8% to 63,273.

According to USA Cycling, Lance Armstrong's return to professional bike racing has had a direct impact on the number of U.S. registered bike racers in 2009.

10 percent of Boulder, CO residents normally bike to work, nearly 20 times the national average. Since 2000, the number of residents driving alone to work decreased from 61 to 54 percent. During the same time, the national drive-alone work-trip mode share increased 5.1 percent.

In downtown Boulder, CO, bicycle ridership has increased 14 percent between 2008 and 2009 and 46 percent since 2007.

The number of Americans who commuted to work primarily by bike in 2008 increased 14 percent from 2007, 36 percent since 2005, and 43 percent since 2000. For interactive spreadsheets of bike commute share by city or state, visit the League of American Bicyclists.

The proportion of workers who drove to work alone decreased slightly between 2007 and 2008, from 76.1% to 75.5%.

In 2008, the number of miles driven in America dropped 3.6% and highway fatalities dropped 9 percent, the lowest fatality level in 50 years.

From 1995 to 2005, China's bike fleet declined by 35 percent (from 670 million to 435 million bikes), while private car ownership more than doubled (from 4.2 million to 8.9 million.)

In 2007, the number of miles Americans drove dropped for the first time since 1980.

More than one-fifth (21%) of Americans say they have changed the way they commute to work because of the recession.

In 2009, bicycling participation increased in Minnesota while bicycle crashes and injuries decreased. In Minneapolis, the Midtown Greenway saw a 24% increase in bike riders during the first 4 months of 2009 compared to 2008. Ridership from March-December 2008 was up 32% over the same period in 2007.

A 2008 poll by Coldwell Banker found that 78% of real estate agents say their clients want to live in an area that helps reduce gasoline costs.

According to one study, U.S. bicycling participation increased more than 11% between 2007 and 2008.

Between 2005 and 2009, the number of bicyclists in Santa Barbara, CA, increased by 16%.

Between 2005 and 2008, bicycling increased 104% in Philadelphia.

Between 2007 and 2008, overall bicycle use in Portland, Oregon increased 28%.

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.

As of 2008, in some Portland neighborhoods nearly 1/3 of residents use a bicycle as their primary or secondary mode to get to work.

In 2008, the number of licensed bicycle racers, events, and clubs grew for the sixth consecutive year. Since 2002, the number of licensed racers has grown 48%.

2008 participation in Oregon's Cross Crusade race series grew 25% from 2007, with an average of 1,045 participants per race.

Colorado's American Cycling Association saw a 23% increase in the number of cyclocross riders from 2007 to 2008, and an overall rider increase of 3.4%.

In Minneapolis the number of bicycle commuters increased 49% between 2006 and 2007.

In Pittsburgh the number of bicycle commuters increased 38% between 2006 and 2007.

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.

In 2008, helmet use and female cyclists reached all-time highs in Portland, Ore. 80% of recorded cyclists wore helmets, and 32% of all cyclists were female.

In Marin County, CA, bike commuting increased 66% while bicycle crashes declined 34% from 1998 to 2008.

According to a summer 2008 Bikes Belong survey of over 100 bicycle retailers, compared to 2007:

• 73% said they are selling more transportation-related bikes
• 84% said they are selling more transportation-related accessories
• 88% said they are selling more transportation-related service

 

• 95% of shops said customers cited high gas prices as a reason for their transportation-related purchases
• 80% of retailers said gas prices were helping them sell more bikes for transportation. - 86% thought accessory sales were getting a boost
• 89% said they were selling more service because of high gas price

In a summer 2008 AARP survey, 15% of older adults said they had ridden a bicycle more frequently since gas prices had risen. Yet only 4 in 10 said they thought their neighborhood had adequate bicycle accommodations.

A fall 2008 study estimated that 12% of the British workforce, around 3.3 million people, have recently started cycling to work in order to save money.

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.

In Portland, Oregon 7,100 daily trips or 21% of all trips on the Hawthorne Bridge over the Willamette River are made by bike. If those 7,100 trips were made by car, Portland would have to build a new bridge.

The Midtown Greenway in Minneapolis, MN gets an average of 3,500 bicyclists a day, more traffic than 77% of Minneapolis city roads.

In Copenhagen, 54% of cyclists say they bike because it is easy and fast, 19% do it for the exercise, 7% bike for the convenience, 6% state financial reasons, and 1% bike for environmental reasons.

One-quarter of Copenhagen families with two or more children have a cargo bike.

In Copenhagen, the ratio of bikes to people is 1:1.

Nearly nine out of 10 bicyclists in Oregon and southwest Washington also own and drive automobiles. Car ownership level doesn't differ between less- and more-experienced cyclists, but car usage drops significantly as cyclists become more experienced.

In 2008, the average Bicycle Friendly Community had three times more bike commuters than the national average. The bike commute share of Bicycle Friendly Communities also grew 60 percent more than the national average.

In a 2009 survey of Portland, Oregon cyclists, more than two-thirds said that they attempted to bike during a time of severe snowstorms. Of those who did not decide to bike, the most common reasons for not biking were concern for safety (75%) and road conditions (77%).

Two-thirds of all driving trips to shuttle others around are made by women. Whether working or not, mothers with school-aged children make 20% more trips than the average woman and 21% more than the average man.

American mothers spend over an hour a day driving, on average, which adds up to almost 17 days behind the wheel per year. Moms also spend more time driving than the average parent spends dressing, bathing, and feeding a child.

In 2007, 130 million bicycles were produced worldwide, more than twice the 52 million cars produced.

In the Yukon Territory, twice as many people bike to work as in California, and three times as many as in Florida.

Europeans bicycle an average of 188 km per year; United States residents bike only 40 km a year.

In the Netherlands, 86% of people have a positive opinion of the car, while 5% have a negative opinion; 84% of Dutch have a positive opinion of the bicycle, while 7% have a negative opinion.

People who cycle more are generally more positive about bicycling for transportation. Only 5% of Dutch frequent cyclists have a negative opinion of cycling, compared to 29% of infrequent cyclists.

30% of bike commuters use a mountain bike, 28% a road bike, 18% a hybrid, and 17% a touring bike. 35% of bike commuters own a second, bad-weather bike.

Bicyclists with more automobiles in their household are less likely to bicycle for any purpose. The more bicycles a cyclist owns, the more likely they are to choose to bicycle.

Bicycling for non-commuting purposes generally precedes bicycling for commuting.

Work trips account for only 15% of all trips.

From 1977-1995, the number of bicycle trips taken in the U.S. doubled.

On the average day when an adult rides a bicycle, he or she rides for about 40 minutes.

89% of bicycle trips begin at a residence.

The average commuting bicycle costs $687.

Paris’ automated bike-sharing system, Vélib', includes 20,600 bikes distributed among 1,451 stations throughout the city. In the first six months, people took the bikes on 13.4 million trips—an average of 75,000 trips per day.

High school students are less likely to bike or walk to school if they are girls, in grade 12, smoke daily, are low-moderate in physical activity, or attend a rural school.

The average bicycle commuter has been commuting by bike for 8.3 years.

Communities with more parks have significantly higher levels of bicycling and walking for transportation.

Therapy bicycling programs have been shown to decrease depression in older adults.

More than half of older adults who reported an inhospitable biking, walking, and transit environment outside their homes said they would bicycle, walk, and take transit more if their streets were improved.

In Germany and the Netherlands, the elderly make over half of trips by biking or walking. In America, the elderly make only 9% of trips by biking or walking.

In the Netherlands, adults 75 or older make a quarter of all trips by bike. In Germany, adults 75+ make 7% of trips by bike. In the U.S., adults 65 or older make only 0.4% of all trips by bike.

More than one in five Americans 65 or older does not drive. Over half of these non-drivers stay at home because they say they have no transportation options.

In a survey of American adults 65 and older, 82% said they worry that they will be stranded and unable to get around when they can no longer drive.

According to a summer 2008 survey of more than 1,000 Americans 50 and older, 94% were concerned about the recent rise in gas prices, and 15% said they had ridden a bicycle more frequently in response to high gas prices. Younger respondents (age 50-64) were more likely than older respondents (age 65+) to say they had ridden a bike.

The prevalence of cycling is higher is areas with higher gasoline prices and less urban sprawl.

Riding in "ciclovia" events is associated with more utilitarian cycling.

The Victorian Department of Transport conducted 14 focus group discussions to better understand barriers to cycling and walking for transportation. Read the findings here.

As bicyclists become more comfortable with riding, the number and percentage of weekly trips taken by bike increase significantly.

Most Americans say they would stop driving alone to work and seek alternate transportation when gasoline prices are at $4 or $5.

People are more likely to bike for transportation if they have social support from family and friends.

According to a survey of British bike commuters, 40% took up cycling commuting for their health, 30% started riding to save money on fuel, and only 7% stated environmental concerns as their primary motivation for biking to work.

A £2 ($3.90) daily payment for commuting to work would double the level of cycling and reduce car demand by 5.4%.

38% of Washingtonians who bicycle commuted for the first time during a ride to work day commuted by bike after the event.

27% of Australians who bicycle commuted for the first time during a ride to work day were still commuting by bicycle five months after the event.

People who have flexible work schedules are more likely to bike commute than those who don't.

Workers who are inactive are less likely to try biking or walking to work than those who are already physically active.

Workers whose commutes are shortest and go through the most connected streets are the most likely to bike or walk to work.

A person is 7% more likely to bike or walk to non-work activities for every 1,000 retail workers within a half mile of their home.

Three-quarters of parents who drive their children less than 2 miles to school say they do it for convenience and to save time.

Parents are significantly more likely to let their children bike or walk to school when they believe that other adults in the neighborhood watch out for children.

More than 70 percent of all U.S. children age five to 14 ride a bicycle.

On average, boys cycle nearly 6 times as much as girls (138 miles/year versus 24 miles/year.)

Boys are more likely to bike or walk to school than girls.

Students are less likely to bike or walk to school if they have to travel along and/or cross a road with busy traffic and no lights or crossing points.

In a study of youth soccer players in Davis, California, over three-quarters of players and their parents drive to soccer games, with less than 20% biking, even though the average distance to the games was less than two miles. Soccer players who biked to school and whose parents regularly bicycled were significantly more likely to bike to the games.

12% of American children's trips to sports activities are made by bike.

80% of BMX riders are 15-25 years old 52% have been riding 1-5 years 66% plan on spending $500 or more on their bike this year alone 99% ride street 94% ride park 80% ride dirt 48% ride vert 46% ride flat 34% race

Adolescents are more likely to bike or walk to school if they are males, Latinos, from lower-income families, public school students, from an urban areas, and living closer to school. Adolescents without an adult present after school and those whose parents know little about their whereabouts after school are also more likely to actively commute.

In rural areas, adolescents with access to a safe park get more regular physical activity and are less likely to be inactive than those without access to a safe park.

In one generation, the percentage of children who walk or bike to school has dropped from 50% to 15%.

35% of Dutch adolescents cycle to school on most days, and nearly 50% bike or walk.

Once children have to commute more than 0.75 km (0.47 mi) to school, the chance that they commute by biking or walking drops.

Children are more likely to bike or walk to school if they live less than 800 meters (0.5 mile) away.

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.

In one study, over 90% of adolescents who perceived distance as a barrier to active commuting to school lived further than 2.5 miles from school.

In large urban areas, 39% of land area is within 0.5 mile of a public school, and in small urban areas, 26.5% was within 0.5 mile of a public school.

65.6 million people in urban areas could benefit from Safe Routes to School projects.

A 2007 analysis of California schools showed that Safe Routes to School infrastructure improvements increased biking and walking by up to 200%.

Regular cycling or walking to school (10+ trips/week) is associated with parents' travel mode to work.

Young children (ages 5-14) with mothers who commute to work in the morning are less likely to bike or walk to school.

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.

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.

Boys who report having many peers to hang out with locally are more likely to cycle for transportation and recreation.

Urban adolescents cycle or walk to regular activities more often than rural adolescents.

Youths who cycle or walk to school are more likely to cycle or walk to other activities.