Bike Commuting By the Numbers
Compared to Americans, Europeans are way out in front
Transportation planners in the Netherlands, Germany, and Denmark have invested heavily in bicycle paths and lanes, discouraged the use of cars, and gone to great efforts to protect the legal rights and safety of cyclists. A few stats:
1 percent of trips in the United States are made on a bicycle. That's 10 percent in Germany, 18 percent in Denmark, and 27 percent in the Netherlands. In Portland, Ore., 3.5 percent of trips to work are made by bike, the highest share among the 50 largest American cities. The lowest: Kansas City, Mo., at a paltry 0.02 percent.
37 percent of short trips (under 2.5 kilometers, or 1.5 miles) are made on a bicycle in the Netherlands, compared with 2 percent in the United States. 1.1 cyclists are killed per 100 million km cycled there; in the United States, 5.8 cyclists are killed per 100 million km.
Motorists are legally responsible for collisions with children and elderly cyclists in the Netherlands and Germany even when cyclists are disobeying traffic rules. (Not generally true here.) However, bicyclists who disobey the rules of the road there are more likely to be ticketed.
Alcohol use, by driver or cyclist, was reported in more than one third of U.S. crashes that resulted in cyclist fatalities in 2006.
Sources: "Making Cycling Irresistible: Lessons From the Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany" by John Pucher and Ralph Buehler, Transport Reviews, 2008; National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; U.S. Census
Reader Comments
America Needs to Follow Europe's Example
3.5% is the largest in the US?!? No wonder our obesity rate is skyrocketing. Hopefully with the rise in gas prices, Americans will value the economical and environmental benefits of riding a bike.
New Belgium Brewing has launched an interactive online blog for its 15,000 Team Wonderbike members, who pledge to bike instead of drive as often as possible - assuming, of course, they don't do either after tossing back a couple of Fat Tires. The brewery released its list of top 10 Marvelous Reasons Why Our Employees Love to Ride. See more reasons at teamwonderbike.com/blog.
RE: Apples & Organges
Responding to Ed Wagner's comments... he's absolutely right that urban design and compact, denser communities inherently encourage more walking and biking and less driving. But to assume that the process is entirely driven by economics instead of governmental policies is incorrect. Government policies have prioritized road-building and sprawl for the last half-century, resulting in our car culture. Our federal government invests only about 1.5% of all transportation dollars into walking and biking.
While New York City is constrained by water, Portland, Ore., is constrained by government policies (the Urban Growth Boundary) that encourage density. When cities like Portland have high numbers of people biking, it's not just due to density, but also to intentional governmental policies. Portland has, over the past 15-20 years, built a vast and largely connected network of facilities to allow people to safely walk and bike. As a result, the number of cyclists has increased at least five-fold (with rapid recent increases not included).
In Minneapolis, 28% of all trips don't involve a car. That's more than 1/4 of all trips that are made solely by walking, biking, or transit. If these cities can do it, others can too. And many are trying.
We must continue to hold our government to high standards in which people are provided with the choice to get around in the most efficient and safe manner. More people will walk and bike instead of drive if given the opportunity to do so safely.
Bike DC 2008
To meet the world trend, DC government just launched SmartBike Sharing Program and I am sure that will boost citizens and visitors to appreciate more the beauty of DC, and make more people think about using bikes for commuting.
One more good news to share here. Bike DC event is coming back this year, and will be held on September 27, 2008.This event will surly raise the awareness of "go green."
Bike DC is a noncompetitive, community bike ride through 17 car-free miles of Washington, DC. The route is designed to be enjoyed by experienced riders, novices and families. So that participants may fully appreciate the adventure of cycling on car free city streets, Bike DC is a ride, not a race.
Bike DC will begin on “America’s Main Street”: Pennsylvania Avenue. With the U. S. Capitol as the backdrop, we will bike up Pennsylvania Avenue past the White House to Embassy Row. On Massachusetts Avenue the ride goes by 40 embassies—from Azerbaijan to Zambia.
The first rest stop on the route will be at Twin Oaks, adjacent to the National Cathedral. The government of the Republic of China (Taiwan) has graciously allowed us to visit the 18-acre grounds of the Twin Oaks Estate. The Georgian Revival mansion was build by Gardiner Greene Hubbard, founder of the National Geographic Society, and once was home to Alexander Graham Bell. Later, this nationally registered historic site served as the official residence of ROC (Taiwan) ambassadors to the United States. It remains a symbol of friendly relations between Taiwan and the U.S. to this day.
For registration and more details, please check out http://www.bikedc.net/
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