Bicycling and Walking in the United States
The Alliance for Biking and Walking has a new report out titled “Bicycling and Walking in the United States: 2010 Benchmarking Report.” In it, there are facts and statistics on the status of bicycling and walking in the United States and a state-by-state ranking of the levels of bicycling and walking, pedestrian safety, and the percentage of federal transportation dollars spent in support of bicycling and walking.
There were some very interesting — even shockig — tidbits in the report. For example, with regard to the number of people who bicycle and walk:
- Nationwide, only 0.9% of trips (a “trip” is commuting, going to the store, going to the movies or a restaurant, etc..) are by bicycle. Walking makes up 8.7% of trips. For comparison, in the Netherlands, 27% of trips are by bicycle and 22% are by walking.
- Nationwide, only 0.5% of commuters are bicyclists. If this isn’t shocking enough, consider that this number is a 42% increase from the percentage of bicycle commuters in 2000.
- Of all the federal transportation dollars states receive, only 1.2% of those dollars go to support bicycling and walking. That’s about $1.29 per person.
But the real shocking data is in the area of public health:
- Between 1960 and 2000, bicycling and walking levels fell by 67%. During the same time period, obesity levels rose by 241%.
- Between 1966 and 2001, the number of children who walked or bicycled to school dropped by 68%. During the same period, the percentage of obese children rose 367%.
- Quoting the report: “In general, states with the highest levels of bicycling and walking have the lowest levels of obesity, hypertension (high blood pressure), and diabetes and have the greatest percentage of adults who meet the recommended 30-plus minutes a day of physical activity.”
Interesting stuff, I thought. Here’s a link to the Alliance for Biking and Walking web site:
and a link to their report:
