Comparing states and big cities for bicycle commuting and safety

Oregon has the highest rate of bicycle commuting in the 50 states, but South Dakota is the safest state for cycling.

Those are just a couple of findings in the extensive Benchmarking Report for 2012 issued this week by the appropriately named Alliance for Biking and Walking.

The report ranks the state and big cities on levels of bicycling and walking, the comparative risks of those pursuits, and funding for non-motor vehicle transportation.

In most categories, my home area of Seattle and Washington state ranks in the top 10 or 15. Glad to see that.

The alliance created the benchmarking report to help communities see how they compare with other communities. The goal is to target more funding that supports bicycle and pedestrian projects.

Risk

The authors used information gleaned from the U.S. Census and American Community Surveys in recent years to determine bike trip frequency, then factored in fatality data (weighted by bicycling rates) to find the safest communities for cycling.

Safest states for bicycling
1. South Dakota
2. Vermont
3. Oregon
4. Nebraska
5. North Dakota
6. Colorado
7. Montana
8. Wyoming
9. Idaho
10. Washington

Safest cities for bicycling
1. Honolulu
2. Milwaukee
3. Omaha
4. Washington, DC
5. Portland, OR
6. San Francisco
7. Sacramento
8. Boston
9. Minneapolis
10. Austin
11. San Jose
12. Seattle

As seen in the map, the highest risk to bicyclists is found in the southeastern US. Mississippi ranks dead last, following Florida, Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, and South Carolina.

Charlotte, NC, ranked the least safe city for bicycling.

Funding and policy

That these cities and states rank high or low is no accident. The safer cities generally spend more on bicycle infrastructure and have master plans in place to guide bicycle project development.

Quite a few, such as Washington, have “complete streets” laws that require bicycling and walking be considered for all transportation projects. They also have “safe routes to school” laws. All those laws are spelled out in the Benchmarking report.

Charts also show which states and cities do the most to encourage bicycling through bike education events and bike to work days.

Healthy lifestyles

That encouragement includes the efforts of local bicycle clubs; Seattle's Cascade Bicycle Club is profiled in the report as the nation's largest and one of the oldest existing bicycle groups.

The report also repeats findings from the Centers for Disease Control and many other sources that exercise improves health. It finds that, generally, those states with the lowest levels of walking and bicycling to work have the highest rates of obesity. (Interestingly, Washington state runs counter to the trend.)

Bicycle commuting rates

Cycling to work by state
1. Oregon — 2.1%
2. Montana — 1.5%
3. Idaho — 1.3%
4. Colorado — 1.3%
5. Wyoming — 1.0%
6. California — 1.0%
7. Hawaii — 0.9%
8. Alaska — 0.9%
9. Washington — 0.9%
10. Arizona — 0.9%
11. Minnesota
12. Utah
13. New Mexico
14. Wisconsin
15. Massachusetts
16. Vermont
17. North Dakota
18. Florida
19. Illinois
20. South Dakota
21. Nevada
22. Nebraska
23. Maine
24. New York
25. Pennsylvania
26. Michigan
27. Iowa
28. Indiana
29. Kansas
30. Delaware
31. Louisiana
32. New Hampshire
33. Virginia
34. Ohio
35. New Jersey
36. Rhode Island
37. Maryland
38. Connecticut
39. Texas
40. South Carolina
41. North Carolina
42. Oklahoma
43. Kentucky
44. Missouri
45. Georgia
46. Mississippi
47. West Virginia
48. Tennessee
49. Arkansas
50. Alabama

Bicycling to work by city
1. Portland, OR — 5.5%
2. Minneapolis — 4.1%
3. Seattle — 2.9%
4. San Francisco — 2.8%
5. Sacramento — 2.2%
6. Oakland — 2.1%
7. Washington, DC — 2.0%
8. Tucson — 1.9%
9. Denver — 1.8%
10. New Orleans — 1.7%
11. Honolulu
12. Philadelphia
13. Boston
14. Albuquerque
15. Austin
16. Chicago
17. Mesa
18. Long Beach
19. San Jose
20. San Diego
21. Los Angeles
22. Milwaukee
23. Atlanta
24. Columbus
25. Phoenix
26. New York
27. Fresno
28. Baltimore
29. Cleveland
30. Colorado Springs
31. Virginia Beach
32. Raleigh
33. Louisville
34. Jacksonville
35. Las Vegas
36. Tulsa
37. Detroit
38. Houston
39. Miami
40. Indianapolis
41. Nashville
42. Kansas City, MO
43. Arlington, TX
44. Omaha
45. El Paso
46. Memphis
47. Fort Worth
48. Charlotte
49. Dallas
50. Oklahoma City
51. San Antonio