These six U.S. cities are top of class when it comes to their bike networks, infrastructure and political willpower.

At PeopleForBikes, we put a lot of emphasis on a city’s bike network and its residents’ ability to safely bike to the things they need, such as transit connections, jobs, schools, grocery stores and hospitals, as well as the things they like, such as recreational amenities like parks, trails or major shopping centers. We also account for a community’s perception of its local bike scene — every year, we conduct an online survey to hear from people that live, work and play in the cities we’re rating. 

Based on a combination of their network and community scores, all of the places on this list ranked among the top 10 cities in the U.S. Although some of these scores might seem low, cities with scores of 50 and up demonstrate higher ridership, improved safety and greater access than their peers. We spoke to experts in each location to better understand what it takes to build better bicycling communities on a large scale. 

San Francisco’s bike culture is long-established and draws from a 30-plus year history of Critical Mass, a form of direct action where people meet at a certain location and time in order to amplify bicycling via a large group ride.  

“The culture in San Francisco is very supportive of change and you have various organizations pushing for improvements,” said Mike Sallabarry, senior transportation engineer with the city. “It’s not just about on-street facilities, it’s about the different programs and events — all those things add up.”

From big events like Bike to Work Day to smaller workshops and educational gatherings, there are plenty of opportunities for folks looking to build community around bikes in the Bay Area. Even before the pandemic hit, San Francisco had a vibrant Sunday Streets program, a nod to more livable, car-free neighborhoods. Since the city is relatively small — roughly 47 square miles — many residents naturally see driving as unnecessary and unsustainable.

“San Francisco gets a reputation for being a hilly city, which of course it is, but so much of our network bypasses those steep hills,” said Matt Lasky, a project manager at San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA). “Recently, with e-bikes, it’s become even more manageable and accessible.”

San Francisco’s commitment to building out additional bicycle infrastructure has also helped, as has the pace at which it's doing so. In 2019, San Francisco Mayor London Breed pledged to build 20 miles of new protected bike lanes over the course of two years, doubling down on the city’s Vision Zero plan by focusing on high injury zones. This May, Mayor Breed announced that the city had exceeded that goal, laying out additional plans for more and better bike parking, as well as safer and slower streets. 

“Our network build-out has accelerated significantly in recent years, primarily due to our quick build program,” said Sallabarry, noting that the process involves using low-cost materials to focus on safety improvements. Adds Lasky, “The program allows us to evaluate what’s working and then iterate on it.”

San Francisco now boasts an extensive, connected network of 450-plus miles of bike lanes, roughly 40 miles of which are protected. The city hopes to release a map of the network that shows the existing bikeways and where gaps exist, allowing for the prioritization of connectivity going forward.

Since all of New York City's five boroughs could be considered a city in and of itself, our City Rating program scores each borough individually. Of the five, four ranked in the top 10 for big cities with Brooklyn scoring highest (62), followed by Manhattan (55), Queens (54) and the Bronx (44). Although automobile ownership in New York City is lower than the national average (about 45% versus around 90%), it’s not surprising that the one borough lagging behind when it comes to bicycling, Staten Island, also has the highest rates of car ownership (83%).

New York City also boasts the highest number of transit users in the country and in many areas, is densely populated. In Manhattan, which only spans about 22 square miles, there’s the added benefit of everything being relatively close together. When it comes to bike infrastructure, however, what really sets the city apart is its commitment to careful planning combined with rapid implementation. Over the last six years, the city built more than 50 miles of bike lanes each year. Even more impressive, it averaged more than 20 miles of protected lanes per year.

“I think the most important thing you can do [for bicycling] is to build more bike infrastructure,” said Ted Wright, director of the bicycle and greenway program at the NYC Department of Transportation. “You can’t just do protected bike lanes, you can’t only do capital projects — you have to deal with what’s out there right now, listen to where people are riding, use your planners to think about where people could be riding, and go out and build stuff.” 

New York City’s aggressiveness when it comes to construction has paid off, with the number of bicyclists in the city jumping roughly 8% per year since the ‘80s. In particular, the city prioritized projects that have immediate benefits, such as bike lanes across bridges or greenways, what Wright refers to as “beautiful highways for bikes.” The city relies on both data and listening to its stakeholders — accounting for all users and modes is especially crucial when space is at a premium. By improving on projects that weren’t quite right, New York City has managed to build trust and success over time.

Despite having a reputation for rain, the climate in Seattle is relatively temperate. When it does rain, it tends to be more of a constant drizzle rather than a downpour and the city rarely gets snow or intense heat. Add in the fact that Seattle is known as an outdoorsy place — it’s the birthplace of REI, after all — and you get a populace that’s already primed for biking.

“We also have a great advocacy community that has a good relationship with the city,” said Serena Lehman, senior transportation planner with the city. “They push the city to be bolder and prioritize funding for bike projects.”

Even internally, Lehman notes that in the last 15 years, bike champions have become ubiquitous, helping to connect bicycling to transit, advocate for connections from certain neighborhoods or allocate funds for underserved communities. Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan has also made a big commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, opening up substantial funding for bikes and allowing for the completion of critical infrastructure segments that connect Seattle’s larger network.

“We prioritize our unbuilt segments based on several factors,” said Lehman. “The top factors being safety, then equity and finally connectivity, ridership and livability.”

In 2014, Seattle adopted an ambitious bicycle master plan, prioritizing 226 new citywide network miles to be completed by 2030. Today, the city has completed 33 miles and plans to have another 55 done by 2024. In order to make it easier for new people to ride and commute, Seattle prioritized building key bicycle connections to transit, emphasizing first and last mile connections.

Portland has a reputation for being a bikeable city, something that’s only bolstered by events like Sunday Parkways, where streets are closed for folks to “discover active transportation” and the World Naked Bike Ride, meant to highlight the vulnerability of bicyclists. When new folks move to Portland or relocate in town, the city’s SmartTrips program delivers tailored emails and materials showcasing various active transportation options for their new residence. Unsurprisingly, Portland has the highest percentage of bike commuters for any large U.S. city.

“There’s a long history of advocacy at the political level that stretches back decades, as well as advocacy at the community level,” said John Brady, communications director at the Portland Bureau of Transportation. “There's a tradition of biking in Portland that has flowed both on the policy side of things and also on the culture side of things.”

Portland continues to build infrastructure at an impressive clip, emphasizing network connections between neighborhoods through its Missing Links program. As a bridge town with major freeways that bisect its core, the city has begun to build north-west crossings over interstates and bicycle-pedestrian bridges across the Willamette River. In order to bring in new bikers, the city also focused on expanding greenways and building more infrastructure in East Portland, where more historically marginalized communities reside.

“As a city, we’ve begun assessing everything we do through the lens of racial justice, and biking isn't immune from that,” said Brady, noting that PBOT has a full-time equity and inclusion manager and that they’ve also prioritized the expansion of their fully electric bike share system. “There’s safety in the sense of not being hit by a car while riding, but there’s also personal safety from bigotry and violence. We can build a really great bicycle facility but if Black or Latino Portlanders don’t feel safe taking advantage of it, then we’re not completely doing our job.”

Every city on this list has a bike share program but, when it comes to successful community outreach, none quite compare to Philadelphia's Indego system. The city of Philadelphia is a founding member of the Better Bike Share Partnership and from its inception, Indego has maintained strong equity and educational components, working to bring biking to low-income and historically marginalized communities.

“In our bike network development, we've been able to learn from Indego on how to closely work with neighborhoods,” said Kelley Yemen, Philadelphia’s director of complete streets. “Maybe what’s needed isn’t a bike lane but rather street calming on an adjacent street — we have those conversations and really work to meet people where they’re at as we expand.”

Philadelphia is also working to build out a high-quality, safe and connected network, which it hopes will not only bring in new riders but also keep them riding. The city has consistently seen an increase in bicycling year over year and to keep its numbers growing, Philadelphia is in the process of converting to LED lighting citywide and making all-season bicycling more accessible through winter snow clearing efforts.

“We’re not the richest city but we try to leverage every investment we have to make Complete Streets,” said Yemen, noting that Philadelphia is opportunistic when it comes to development. “When PennDOT is reconstructing a bridge or a street is getting repaved, we’re filling in gaps and making bike network connections.”

While a score of 45 leaves a lot of room for improvement, we’re including Detroit in our list based on its progress. The city built its first protected bike lane in 2017 and by the end of this year, will have added another 43 miles of protected bike lanes. That dramatic increase in quality infrastructure has been bolstered by Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, who loves two-way protected bike lanes, as well as the transfer of key employees from the Planning and Development Department to the Department of Public Works.

“We weren’t making a lot of headway before,” said Erika Linenfelser, an urban planner with the city who moved departments with her boss, Deputy Director of Complete Streets Caitlin Marcon. “The Department of Public Works is the one that installs and maintains the bike lanes — for it to now have a Complete Streets focus has been a fundamental shift.”

Detroit is also relatively flat and blessed with incredibly wide streets, a vestige from the time when it earned the nickname Motor City. In the decades since then, Detroit has lost most of its car manufacturing business and its population, declaring bankruptcy in 2013. The city, which was originally built to accommodate 2 million people, now has a population of under 700,000, leaving those big streets with very little traffic. 

“We don’t have a lot of money but it's also fairly easy for us to go in and build protected bike lanes,” said Linenfelser. “We don't have to eliminate street parking, as we can literally just take out a lane that isn’t being used.”

There’s a general consensus among Detroit residents that safer streets are needed and Linenfelser’s team has been emphasizing the fact that more bicycle lanes and lower speed limits benefit pedestrians and drivers alike. Black and Latino residents make up almost 85% of the city and there has been a valid concern, often voiced by City Council members, that bike lanes “aren’t for them” or that they might lead to gentrification. In order to promote bicycling as an activity for everyone, the city upped its educational outreach, diversified its marketing, utilized social media more and partnered with community organizations.

Currently, Detroit is considering how it might grow its network as part of a larger Transportation Master Plan. Since the money isn’t available for a citywide network of protected bike lanes, slow streets with wayfinding signage will likely play an important role when it comes to filling in network gaps and making bicycling viable for less central neighborhoods.

How does your city rank? Check out our 2021 City Ratings and learn how to improve your score.

We’re proud to announce our Living Lab winners, all of which will create replicable programs for improving shared micromobility in low-income communities.

In 2014, the Better Bike Share Partnership (BBSP) formed with a mission: identify barriers to bike share and develop strategies to address them. By partnering with Philadelphia and its Indego bike share system—using the city as a “Living Lab,” or a testing ground for innovative solutions—the BBSP was able to identify replicable best practices that would make any micromobility system more equitable. This year, the partnership is expanding its Living Lab work to include four more cities alongside Philadelphia, each with a specific target area and goal for making bike share better.

The BBSP invited proposals from partnerships of cities, bike share operators and community-based organizations looking to pilot, expand, replicate or scale strategies and tactics related to a specific issue and historically-marginalized population. Projects could not include the funding of new bike share stations or related equipment, on-street infrastructure projects, general operating costs or anything related to a micromobility system that didn’t yet exist. Only applications from U.S.-based, nonprofit organizations or city agencies were considered. In the end, the BBSP received 16 applications from cities large and small across the country. 

“Being a Living Lab means taking a deep dive into addressing the obstacles that affect access to and use of shared micromobility systems,” said Tangier Barnes Wright, partnership and program manager at the PeopleForBikes Foundation, a founding partner of the BBSP. “At the end of two and a half years, the Living Labs communities will share unique and replicable approaches to achieving equity in shared micromobility that can be utilized nationwide.”

Over the course of two and a half years, the BBSP has committed to disseminating $200,000 in funding to each Living Lab, which will cover costs associated with proposals as well as technical support, scholarships and travel stipends for relevant conferences. Grantees will also have the opportunity to convene monthly and share learnings as a cohort. Follow along on the BBSP blog in order to track the work of each Living Lab, including deep dives into individual proposals, progress made and any challenges that arise.

“These five organizations crafted creative and thoughtful proposals to look deeply at how and why people use shared micromobility — or don’t,” said Zoe Kircos, director of grants and partnerships at PeopleForBikes. “We look forward to sharing the progress, challenges and lessons learned from these Living Labs in the years ahead.”

The following projects received Living Labs funding:

The Northwest Side Housing Center will work with partners to amplify the voice of youth in Chicago’s micromobility planning and implementation efforts. Teens from the Belmont Cragin neighborhood will help design and roll out a community education campaign that will focus on bikes as a way to connect the neighborhood to other transit options. Additionally, members of the Belmont Cragin Youth Leadership Council will learn bike mechanic and handling skills, which they will use to help educate their community about bike share and the many benefits of bicycling.

Building the Bike-to-Bus Connection
Detroit, MI

MoGo, a Detroit-based nonprofit organization, and its partners will work together to identify and address the technical, behavioral and structural barriers associated with bus and bike share trips in order to create better-connected transportation options in Metro Detroit. Feedback and data collected from local residents will inform strategies that MoGo will pilot and test over the course of the grant.

The City of Philadelphia, along with partners at Bicycle Transit Systems and the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, will continue to refine and expand its ambassador programs and deep community engagement work, with a particular focus on the new neighborhoods that will be served by Indego's (Philadelphia’s bike share program) extensive expansion. Additional program offerings, such as the Indego Champions and Changing Gears programs, will also be scaled up based on pilot projects completed in 2020. 

The Portland Bureau of Transportation and its partner, the Multnomah County REACH (Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health) Program, will help local community health workers provide Biketown (Portland’s bike share program) access, education and support for clients who receive county health assistance, all with the overall goal of improving health outcomes.

Red Bike (Cincinnati’s bike share system) will supercharge its highly successful Red Bike Go program, implementing and assessing a variety of new strategies to increase community involvement as it expands into two new neighborhoods. Its approach will include creative partnerships with schools and community-based organizations, youth ambassadors and youth-focused programming with the integration of art throughout.

Meet 5 Grantees Out to Transform Bike Share

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Deloitte, one of the world’s “Big Four” accounting and consulting firms, estimates that by 2022, the number of people who will bike to work in big cities across the world will double, citing technological innovations in the bicycling world being a driving force behind getting more people on bikes. 

As cities across the U.S. grow and change, so do the ways their citizens move about them. While these evolutions are usually seen gradually over time, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has rapidly accelerated the shift towards embracing alternative transportation methods.

Before the crisis, many American cities were already at the precipice of needing to find a solution for overcrowded infrastructure, namely heavily trafficked roads congested predominantly with single occupancy vehicles. After COVID-19 decimated public transportation ridership numbers nationwide, which looks to be a continuing trend as the months progress, cities will not have the capacity to operate if those who previously relied on mass transit and rideshare turn to driving cars when things get “back to normal.”

This is a complex issue in which scientists and researchers are working around the clock to try to find a grand solution, but for the time being, one thing is clear: more people need to get on bikes. 

A study published earlier this year by Deloitte notes that bicycles will play an increasingly important role in how people will get where they need to go, especially in big cities. The study notes the increasing amount of stress put on a city’s streets as populations rise, and how bicycles can help alleviate a lot of that stress, not to mention improving air quality and public health at the same time. 

Since the onset of COVID-19, a decrease in vehicular travel, resulting from lockdowns and stay-at-home orders, has already improved air quality worldwide. More people choosing to go by bike rather than car could help continue these trends, especially in big cities most heavily affected by air pollution.

While bicycles may be one of the oldest forms of transportation, modern technological advancements are helping make the bike a more attractive way to move about. Electric bikes (e-bikes), bike share programs and improvements in cargo carrying are all helping break down the traditional barriers that have previously prevented people from relying on bicycles for transportation rather than just recreation. 

E-bikes allow people to commute further, faster (and easier) by bike. For those living in crowded cities, they often negate the pitfalls of rush hour traffic and parking issues, which are becoming worse as cities grow in population. In 2018, the average U.S. driver spent 97 hours behind the wheel stuck in traffic — the equivalent of two-and-a-half work weeks.

Similarly, bike share programs (which are increasingly moving to using e-bikes over traditional bikes) offer the same benefits to those moving around big cities who may not be able to afford a new bike or do not want the hassle of storage and maintenance. 

The advancement of cargo bikes and cargo trailers are also a big step in helping people move around cities, answering one of the biggest questions when people make the transition from bike to car, “where do I put all my stuff?” Whether it’s kids, groceries, food deliveries or whatever else you can think of having to move around town, an increase in easy and accessible cargo options for bikes may be a big factor for people on the fence about making the transition to going by bike. 

Bikes won’t solve all of the problems overcrowded cities will face in the months and years to come, but they can help provide a much-needed step in the right direction.

The Importance of Bikes in the Future of Urban Mobility

Earlier this month, 24 women representing the U.S. bike industry converged in Washington, D.C., for the annual PeopleForBikes women’s fly-in. Our largest fly-in yet presented a valuable opportunity to work with industry peers to promote federal funding for bike infrastructure policies.

Each PeopleForBikes fly-in centers around a full day of meetings with federal lawmakers or their staff, offering bike business leaders the chance to highlight the industry’s contributions to local, state and national economies. Women’s fly-in participants met with 30 offices on Capitol Hill to generate support for the prioritization of bikes in the 2020 reauthorization of the FAST (Fixing America’s Surface Transportation) Act.

“Speaking regularly with elected officials helps industry members understand the work we do in support of better bike policies and, more importantly, it transforms individual business owners into some of the nation’s best advocates for bikes,” said Jenn Dice, PeopleForBikes’ COO.

Attendees met with legislative staff in teams of three to five, and each meeting was led by an executive from the elected official’s state or district. The format demonstrates the industry’s alignment in driving its policy agenda forward, while also offering participants a front-row seat to lawmakers at work.

“Being a part of the PeopleForBikes lobby day reinforced and amplified my desire to continue pushing for policy that supports local infrastructure, recreation access and safer streets. These policies are good for our business, and good for the bike industry as a whole,” said Allison Straub, president of Burley Design in Eugene, Oregon.

This week brings together every sector of the bike industry, from retail to manufacturing to legal and advocacy, and connects individuals from each to their elected representatives, providing the critical opportunity to talk about what matters most to the industry and to riders.

“As someone who represents injured bicyclists, and who is always advocating for safer cycling and better/more infrastructure for cycling, I felt like this trip was my first real opportunity to influence the people in our government who make those decisions,” said Megan Hottman, founder, attorney, and cycling advocate at Hottman Law Office.

To Congress and lawmakers, this week of political advocacy from women executives show the progress being made — and the work still to be done — in diversifying and emboldening the bike industry to make biking more accessible and enjoyable for all Americans. “In an industry that is predominantly white, cisgender men, the women’s fly-in empowers one of the underrepresented populations in this industry to collaborate, make their voice heard and directly influence the funding that is required to provide infrastructure for new and existing bike riders,” said Jessica Grenwis, Quality Bicycle Products’ VP of marketing, attending the women’s fly-in for her second time.

The June fly-in coincided with our largest-ever Congressional Bike Fest on June 5, attracting more than 600 congressional staff interested in bikes, plus two members of Congress who are part of the Bike Caucus. This event is both a fun and casual networking opportunity for the fly-in participants after a long day of meetings and a way for the bike industry to showcase the latest and greatest products to the Hill. Bike Fest is an energizing reminder that people in D.C. working behind the scenes on policy care about bikes, whether from an individual rider perspective, as a business interest or as a sustainable and efficient mode of transportation that can modernize cities and outdoor recreation — provided they work to ensure funding for such projects.

We wrapped up our week in D.C. with an e-bike tour around the National Mall. JUMP provided 30 of their dockless e-bikes for the ride, allowing the group to enjoy a leisurely cruise around various historic monuments.

Interested in learning more about or participating in future PeopleForBikes fly-ins? Please contact Jordan Trout.

Bike Industry Leaders Roll into Washington for Women’s Fly-in

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PeopleForBikes at Work on Bike Share

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How to Build Big Cities for Biking

Meet 5 Grantees Out to Transform Bike Share

The Importance of Bikes in the Future of Urban Mobility

Bike Industry Leaders Roll into Washington for Women’s Fly-in