Reynolds 

On my commuter bike with 700x38s, about 4-5 flats a year (about 7000kms)

downtube42

Maybe one a month spread over the year, but they come in clusters. I commute year round outside Portland OR, so much of the year I'm riding in dark/wet where I can't see to avoid crap. I've lived and commuted in Indiana and Texas, and done randonneuring rides in quite a number of places around the States and a few around the world. I've never seen as much glass on the roads as here.

I categorize flats this way: legitimate and self-imposed.

Legitimate flats are something I ran over, like a wickedly curved 8 penny nail that went in the side and out the tread, a heavy staple, glass, a thorn, a sliver of metal, and ghost bits that slash and leave.

Self imposed flats are secondary flats after I failed to remove the cause of a legitimate flat, pinch flats from stupid cycling mistakes or letting my pressure get too low, failed patches, flats from riding too-worn tires, flats from ancient tubes that should have been retired, and immediate secondary flats from a rushed repair job.

I'm running maybe 1:1 on legitimate:self-imposed flats, but that might be generous.

SalsaShark

My commuter bike is setup with Schwalbe Marathon tires, which I've had to repair a flat once in the last 5 years, from a nail that would have flatted a car tire. I highly recommend these tires for trouble free commutes

Bikewolf

Flat tires... Damn pieces of glass! Switching (from Schwalbe Energizer Plus) to Marathon E-Plus tires.

bpcyclist

Way more flats for me in the winter here than the summer because of all the additional debris and crap littering the roads during the wet months, plus, as noted by the previous Portlander, we just can't really see what we're doing for about 8 months out of the year. You cannot believe how dark it gets here. That said, on Vittoria Rubinos, maybe one a month. On Gator Hardshells, never. I've owned a ton of tires by all the big mfr's and I wouldn't ride on anything but Hardshells here in the winter.

noglider 

@downtube42, does Oregon have mandatory deposit and mandatory recycling? In New York State, we got mandatory deposit long before recycling became big, and it reduced the amount of glass on the streets by a lot. In case you don't know, mandatory deposit means beverages must be sold in containers that entitle you to return the container for a small refund. Most people don't return the containers, but enterprising people pick through our recycling bins to get the refunds, and everyone wins.

I would estimate that I get about four flats a year, riding 2,000 to 3,000 miles per year. That's not many flats. I do not use tires with any puncture protect, as I prefer the way tires with none ride.

scoatw

I commute everday, year round thru urban setting. The last couple of years I've been riding on Schwalbe Marathon with Green Guard. I'm lucky to get one flat a year with these tires. And I'm getting around 5500 miles before the tread wears out. Excellent tire.

downtube42

Yes, Oregon does. I see people with garbage bags of collected cans, but never bottles. Not sure why.

noglider 

They carry the plastic bottles, too, right? I think the return on investment is greater with lighter weight things. Glass requires more effort, and the return is the same.

ThermionicScott 

In Norway, they have these special garbage cans with bottle and can holders built in. That way, if you were going to just throw away a recyclable can or bottle, you can just put in there, and it's easier for, well... more motivated recyclers to get to them.

daoswald

I commute a few times per week when the weather's reasonable. As it shifts cooler or wetter my bike commuting tapers off a bit.

I have had one flat this season on my commuter bike, and that was because I took it off-road into a goathead infested area. I ride with 32mm Continential Four Season tires. And when they wear out, I'll get another set. They're great tires for a road commuter.

Archwhorides 

I’ve had one flat this year....