The number of people riding to work is increasing. Some cities have taken notice and are taking steps to encourage more cycling and walking, which is a good thing.

The number of people who commute to work by bicycle increased about 60% over the past decade, while the number of people walking to their jobs remained stable, according to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Biking to work increases 60% in past decade

As much as I don't want to see people bankrupted trying to own/lease a car, it makes me happy to think that in the future we may start seeing more [safe] bicycling infrastructure being put into place across the U.S./world. I know that bikes aren't the solution to all ills, but I know that riding one to work makes me happy and raises my energy level all day long. Cheers!

Great news. Could means that drivers are using bikes instead of cars. Though this study doesn't say that since there is other means of transportation other than driving, riding a bike and walking.
A french study from ORS ile de france said that the biggest reduction of pollution that cyclists could have is when drivers switch to bicycles or public transportation rather than when people using other means of transportation than cars switch to bicycles or public transportation.
Though car pollution is nothing when compared to ships pollution as 16 big ships pollute as much as all the cars in the world.
How 16 ships create as much pollution as all the cars in the world | Mail Online

Interesting that a good half the cities in the article are college towns. I don't think they're very representative of the population as a whole. But even here in NYC I've seen an increase in the last 4-5 years. I actually count, when I can see them from my train, the number of riders crossing the Manhattan bridge from Brooklyn and it has steadily increased. It isn't scientific, but definitely it is trending up. I join them once or twice a week. I also see when I'm riding that the number of cyclists on my route has gone way up. It went from a handful in Brooklyn to a steady stream, and in Manhattan as I went further uptown there were fewer if any riders. Now there are riders all the way up. Citibike has bumped up the numbers too. You see them everywhere.

But that makes me the type of rider that doesn't really help solve the problem of cars since I don't drive to work anyway.

Unless you're talking about CO2, pollution is basically a local problem, i.e. where there are large concentrations of human activity. Ships at sea don't contribute to the pollution problems in Los Angeles, or Beijing, for example.
That said, I'm all for conserving fossil fuels, and reducing pollution where it is a problem.

I'm not so sure. Groundwater pollution, acid rain, ocean acidification, animal migration, sea food, storms, global warming.... The later is certainly not just a local problem.

Looks like this may not apply to Texas. I hardly see anyone commuting here. lol... But that is fine with me. Bike space at the office and empty lockers at our office shower. If more people would ride theirs bike I would have to fight for it... I know I am selfish...

I have noticed a slight increase of people using bicycles and commuting. Most of them are fair weather commuters. But I have also noticed a great increase in cars. Our rush hour traffic can be hell if you're a driver.

I'm happy to be a bike commuter. Since I started cycling last summer, I've been bike-commuting to work 1-2 days a week on average. It is a lot of fun. I'm sure I will run into some road blocks (figuratively) as I continue, but so far, I've been thoroughly enjoying it. (When I don't bike to work, I take the bus.)

I often suspect that our faltering economy is responsible for so many recently converted bicycle commuters. I believe that in most cases, given a choice (and gainful employment), most recent converts would still prefer automobiles.

It's not really within our DNA to look ahead into the future and critically analyze the negative environmental consequences of our wanton irresponsible behavior, today. We are unfortunately stricken with tunnel vision where our children's futures are concerned. That's why there's less than 1% of us, overall.


However, I will continue to cycle for my own selfish reasons, as well as the environmental ones. I will also continue to expect an increase in the quality of American infrastructure, including its roads, containing well-maintained bicycle lanes.

Thanks for posting this, CbadRider.

www.bikeradar.com/us/gear/article/five-reasons-to-cycle-to-work-29878/

One more reason for transit agencies to allow more bikes on-board, especially during peak hours.

- Andy

Agreed. I've been lucky enough to not run into that situation myself, but I've seen people giving up on loading their bikes on the bus because the rack is full.

What really sucks is if the next bus is in an hour or more like it is in many places.

This new reality of people wanting more to be on bikes is not being addressed by state budgets & transit policy, be it signs saying share he road, or racks on bus, or more service different times of the day, or removing bike restrictions for trains. Of course the Obama administration is having to deal with the circus that is the current congress, so till something there changes we'll need to rely on the states for any changes.

At some point people need to put ideology aside and address reality, facts, and logic. I anxiously wait for the day when this happens. Till then just gotta grin and bear it and be thankful i am able to ride at all.

- Andy

I live in the suburbs of Toronto and majority of people who are car-free over here prefer to take a bus or train or even a taxi instead of biking to work.. All of our transit buses have bike racks and most of them are always empty,, which tells me that most people prefer to take a bus instead of riding their bike.

60% in 10 years? At this rate we'll catch up to The Netherlands in 233 years, Denmark in 227 years, Sweden in 198 years Finland in 190 years, Germany in 186 years, ...

How often are the buses? When i was there the GO & HSR buses seemed to run on half hour intervals, while TTC buses seemed more frequent, i'm not sure if the TTC routes go far outside the city or not. Here where i am, SEPTA bus service outside the city, especially if you're not going to the city is horrific and gets worse with every budget.

- Andy

Not impressed at all!

From article: "Bicyclists still account for fewer than 1% of all commuters."

If I have 2 pennies in my pocket and I pick up another one of the pavement, that's a 50% increase, but still a useless amount.

As a scientist, IMO, this is the most misleading way to use statistics.

I still think it's weird that I had to move from San Jose to a cobblestoned Scandinavian city to see people riding their bicycles for non-sport reasons... It doesn't make any sense! I thought maybe it was still going to be a very urban thing, but I see hundreds of bikes at train stations in the middle of farms near very small towns here in southern Sweden.

It's not weird at all. It makes perfect sense, especially when comparing a US metro region on the west coast to somewhere settled for roughly 1000 years prior to the advent of the bicycle.

Now that was NOT a very nice thing to say!

Cobblestones and cold weather are two pretty good reasons to not ride, problems that I didn't have so much of in the U.S.A. I can't imagine what the ridership levels would be like here if those challenges weren't present.

I hate it when statistics are employed to sway the layperson rather than improving accessibility.

Shame on USA Today for promoting such usage!

Enter the pneumatic tire, invented for this exact reason!

- Andy

I find that in CPH it's irrelevant. People cycle year-round or not at all. When I commute in CPH, I have a fair but of cobblestone pathway to traverse.

Our public transit has improved a lot the in the past few years. More new routes including express routes, new buses, it's more efficient. Long years ago none of our buses had bike racks and now all of them have it. The only problem is overcrowding during rush hour, because of so many people using it.