Cycling to the Future:
Lessons from Cities across the Globe
John Pucher, Rutgers University
Ralph Buehler, Virginia Tech
Photo: Susan Handy Photo: Ralph Buehler
Photo:Photo: SF GregBike CoalitionRaismanSan Antonio Photo: Bike Texas Photo: Marie Demers Advantages of Cycling:
• Economical: Affordable by everyone, requiring minimal costs for individuals and governments • Good for business: Generate retail sales and profits from tourism • No pollution: Clean and quiet • Energy-efficient: Use up calories we need to burn off from eating too much • Healthy: Many studies report on physical, social, mental health benefits • Fun: Getting out into the fresh air with family and friends Cycling Share of Daily Trips in Europe, North 30.0 America, and Australia, 1999-2008
25.0
20.0
15.0
Percent of trips by cycling cycling oftrips by Percent 26
10.0 18
5.0 10 9 9 8
4 4 0.5 1 2 3 1 1 2 0.0
Source: Pucher and Buehler (eds.) City Cycling. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2012 Bicycle Share of Work Commuters in the USA (2007) and Canada (2006)
Source: Pucher, J., Buehler, R., Seinen, M., “Bicycling Renaissance in North America? An Update and Re- Assessment of Cycling Trends and Policies,” Transportation Research A, Vol. 45 (6), 2011, pp. 451-475. Lots of Potential for Increased Cycling:
Many daily trips in American urban areas are short enough to walk or bike! • ~27% of all trips in the U.S. were a mile or shorter in 2009 • ~41% of all trips were shorter than two miles
Share of Cycling for Short Trips
40 NL
35
30 DK
25 GER 20 35 15 31 29 24 24 10
Percent Percent oftrips by cycling 18 16 USA 12 5 7 2 1 0 2 0<2.5km 0<2.5km 0<2.5km 0<2.5km 5<7.5km 4.5<6.5km 4.5km-6.5km 4.5km-6.5km 2.5km<4.5km 2.5km<4.5km 2.5km<4.5km 2.5km<4.5km
Trip distance category Source: Pucher and Buehler (eds.) City Cycling. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2012 Women’s Share of Bike Trips in Europe and North America
60% 56% 55% 55%
50% 49%
45%
40%
35%
30% 30% 27%
Percent of trips by trips Percent by women of 25% 25%
20%
15%
10% USA UK Canada Germany Denmark Netherlands Source: Pucher and Buehler (eds.) City Cycling. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2012 Photo Susan Handy 70
More women on bikes = More cycling Copenhagen 60 More cycling = More women on bikes Amsterdam 50 Tokyo
Berlin 40 Washington Vancouver Toronto Montreal Portland Bicycle share of trips and 30 Minneapolis Chicago San Francisco percentage of female Melbourne cyclists in 14 large cities Percent Percent of bicyclists who are female 20 Sydney
10 Source: Garard, Handy, and Dill, “Women and Cycling,” in Pucher and Buehler (eds.), City Cycling. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2012 0 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 Percent of trips by bicycle 45% More women on bikes = More cycling
40% More cycling = More women on bikes
Yarra Moreland 35% Darebin Melbourne 30% Port Phillip Stonnington
25% Maribyrnong Percent Percent of cyclists who are female Moonee valley Bicycle share of commuter trips 20% Glen Eira Wyndham Banyule Boroondara and percentage of female cyclists Frankston 15% Bayside in Melbourne neighborhoods Kingston Whitehorse 10% Casey Knox Source: Garard, Handy, and Dill, “Women and Cycling,” in Pucher and 5% Hume Buehler (eds.), City Cycling. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2012
Cycling to work mode share 0% 0% 1% 2% 3% 4% 5% 6% 7% 8% Bike Share of Trips by Age Group
45
40
35
NL 30 DK 25
20 40 GER Percent Percent oftrips by cycling 32 15 USA UK 25 22 23 10 20 21 15 15 14 14 14 15 11 5 9 9 9 9 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.5 1 1 3 2 2 2 0 65+ 65 + 65 + 65 + 5-15 0-16 0-17 0-17 16-24 25-39 40-65 17-29 30-59 60-65 18-25 26-44 45-59 60-65 20-29 30-39 40-49 50-59 60-69 70-74 18-25 26-44 45-64 10-19'
Age Group Source: Pucher and Buehler (eds.) City Cycling. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2012 Cycling for ALL AGES Photo: NJ Bike Walk Coalition
Ann and Mike’s ‘Triple Take Tandem’
Cycling facilities should also be safe for persons with disabilities, and bikes CAN be adaptedPucher: to Walking their and Cycling needs for Health Make Cycling Safe for Everyone !
•Especially important for the young, the old, for anyone with disabilities, for the timid or risk-averse •Women more sensitive to safety than men •Safety of cycling in the Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany helps explain high levels of cycling there 20.0 Cylists killed per 100 million km cycled 33.5*
18.0 Cylists injured per 10 million km cycled
16.0 Pedestrians killed per 100 million km walked
Pedestrians injured per 10 million km walked 14.0 13.7
12.0 Cycling can be made very 10.0 safe, as in the Netherlands 9.7 8.0 and Denmark
6.0 5.7 5.5 4.7 Fatalitities and injuries per trip and per kilometer per and trip per injuries and Fatalitities 4.0 3.6 3.3 3.3
2.3 2.4 1.9 2.0 1.6 1.5 1.6 1.3 1.6 1.3 1.6 1.1
0.0 NL DK GER UK USA
Source: Pucher and Buehler (eds.), City Cycling. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2012 160
140 Trends in Cyclist Fatalities 120
100
USA 80 UK Denmark Germany 60 Netherlands
Total cyclist fatalities relative to 1970 (=100 40
20 Source: Pucher and Buehler (eds.), City Cycling. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2012 0
1970 1972 1974 1976 1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008
Reversal in Public Policies in Germany, Denmark, and the Netherlands in 1970s
• Pro-car policies in European cities in 1950s and 1960s caused huge decline in cycling and walking • Dramatic policy turn-around since 1970s to limit car use and promote cycling, walking, and public transport in Dutch, Danish, and German cities Bridge in Freiburg BEFORE and AFTER reforms
1960s Today Typical residential street in Freiburg BEFORE traffic calming reforms
Typical residential street in Freiburg AFTER traffic calming reforms 40 38 37
35 35 Rebound of Bike Share of Trips in German, Dutch, 30 and Danish Cities 29 27
25 25 25
20 Percent of all trips all ofPercent 15 15 14 13 12 12
10
7 6 6
5 4
0 Nuremburg Berlin Cologne Munich Freiburg Muenster ('82-'10) Amsterdam Copenhagen ('76-'12) ('92-'08) ('76-'09) ('91-'11) ('82-'12) ('70-'10) ('98-'10) Source: Pucher, Dill, and Handy, “Infrastructure, Programs, and Policies to Increase Bicycling,” Preventive Medicine, Jan 2010, Vol. 50, S.1, pp. S106-S125.
Recent Boom in Pro-Bike Policies in Many Cities
• Especially since 2000, European and North American cities without a tradition of cycling for daily travel have dramatically raised cycling levels • Improved cycling infrastructure and many other measures to encourage cycling 8.0 7.8
7.0 More and better cycling facilities
6.0 have dramatically increased bike share of trips in cities without any 5.0 Percent Percent of Trips tradition of cycling for daily travel
4.0 3.4
3.0 2.7 2.8 2.5
2.0
1.2 1.0 1.0 0.8 0.8 0.5
0.0 London Barcelona Paris Bogota Seville ('03-'10) ('05-'10) ('01-'10) ('95-'10) ('00-'12) Source: Pucher, Dill, and Handy, “Infrastructure, Programs, and Policies to Increase Bicycling,” Preventive Medicine, Jan 2010, Vol. 50, S.1, pp. S106-S125. Photo: Robin Stallings
Cycling in Sevilla, Spain increased more than 10-fold after these safe cycle tracks were installed 7.0 6.8 Boom in Cycling to Work in 14 6.0 Large US and Canadian Cities
5.0 Source: Pucher, J. and Buehler, R. City Cycling, 4.4 MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass, 2012. 4.1
4.0 3.7 3.7 1990 (USA) / 1996 (Canada) 3.6 3.3 2011 (USA and Canada) 3.0 * 2011 figures for Canadian cities are preliminary estimates 2.6 * 2.4 2.4
Bike Regular Commutes ofShare Bike 2.0 1.8 1.7 1.6 1.5 1.5
1.1 1.1 1.0 1.0 0.9 0.9 0.9 0.9 1.0 0.8 0.8 0.6 0.3 0.3
0.0
6-fold increase in bike trips
Sharp increase in cycling safety in Portland as cycling levels rose
70% fall in crash rate
Source: City of Portland (2013) How to Encourage More Cycling while Improving Safety •Better cycling facilities
•Integration of cycling with public transport •Traffic calming of residential neighborhoods •Mixed-use zoning and improved urban design •Restrictions on motor vehicle use •Traffic education and Safe Routes to School •Traffic regulations and enforcement Most European cities have extensive car- free districts ideal for walking and cycling Cycling is perfect for getting around car-free college campuses such as here at UC Santa Barbara
Pucher and Buehler:Photo: Cycling Ralph for Everyone Fertig Santa Barbara coastal path: Safe and attractive both for cyclists and pedestrians
Conversion of two car lanes to bike path and wider sidewalk Source: Ralph Fertig Bike paths in Dutch cities make it safe and comfortable for all to bike: including women, children, and seniors Source: Warren Salomon One-way cycle track in The Hague
Raised curb between cycle track and traffic lane
Source: Peter Furth Almost 100km of 2-way cycle tracks in Montreal
Separation from traffic via Separation from traffic via bollards and parked cars concrete barriers
Photo: Peter Furth Photo: Velo Quebec Provision of cycle track at this key underpass in Montreal
Separation from traffic via concrete barriers AND bollards
Photo: Velo Quebec •380 mi of new bike lanes and paths since 2000 •Quadrupling in bike trips since 2000 •74% decrease in serious cyclist injuries •56% increase in retail sales along cycle tracks
Photo: NYC DOT Traffic-protected cycle track on 9th Avenue, NYC Mayor Boris Johnson’s planned 15-mile east-west cycle track through the heart of London along Thames River
Physically separated cycle track Cycle track on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington
Photo: Ralph Buehler Source: Alta Planning
This cycle track in St. Petersburg, Florida has increased cycling by senior citizens and women Construction and maintenance financed by private foundation
Photos: Ralph Buehler
Cultural Heritage cycle track in Indianapolis Tripling in cycling in Indianapolis since 2000 This cycle track in Arkansas was financed by Walmart for employees to bike to its headquarters office.
Source: Alta Planning Before After
Transformation of Hornby Street in Vancouver
Photo: Paul Krueger with installation of first-class cycle track Carrall St Dunsmuir
Photo: Paul Krueger
Photo: Paul Krueger Photo: Paul Krueger Over 6km of cycle tracks in Vancouver with more planned
Burrard Bridge
Hornby Photo: Paul Krueger Seattle’s first cycle track in 2013 on Linden Avenue, many more planned Photo: Warren Salomon
Raised crossing for both cyclist and cars, with special pavement and markings
Improving safety of cycle tracks at road crossings Photo: Velo Quebec Safe cycle track crossing at busy intersection in Montreal Bike lanes are much more typical in US cities
Photo: Ralph Fertig Photo: Lewis Thorwaldson All streets should come complete with safe facilities for pedestrians and cyclists Special contraflow lanes in Toronto and Melbourne that permit cyclists to travel in both directions
Contra-flow lanes facilitate bike travel in both directions on one-way streets for cars
Pucher: Walking and Cycling for Health Photo: Seattle DOT
Photo: Seattle DOT Bike lanes in Seattle
Photo: Seattle DOT Photo: Seattle DOT But bike lanes are definitely better than no separate bike facilities, but they do not provide nearly as much protection of cyclists from motor vehicles as cycle tracks
Bike lanes used for Bike lanes used for Dooring of cyclists car parking truck deliveries Photo: Paul Krueger
Photo: Nick Klein
New York Vancouver Buffered bike lanes offer some additional separation from motor vehicle traffic but without physical barriers Photo: Bob Edmiston
How to destroy the benefits of a buffered bike lane: Dearborn Street in Seattle Bridge connections crucial for an integrated cycling network
About 20,000 daily bike trips
over Portland bridges Photo: Greg Raisman Bike paths on the four East River bridges provide crucial connections from Brooklyn and Queens to Manhattan
Source: Transportation Alternatives NYC Photos: Seattle DOT Overpass for cyclists and pedestrians in Seattle Good bike bridge included as part of the Canada Line extension of Skytrain in Metro Vancouver
Source: Translink Bike path on south entry to Lion’s Gate Bridge in Vancouver
Foto: Gordon Price Special traffic signals and signs improve cycling safety Four-way all-green signal for cyclists in Portland
Bike sensor in pavement Red bike lanes for intersection crossings, connected with red brick sidepaths on both sides of every road
Source: City of Muenster, Germany BikeBike lane, lane, advance advance stop line, stopand priority line, signaland specialfor cyclists signal in Muenster for cyclists in Germany
P h W lki d C li f H l h Bike boxes in Seattle also
Photo: Seattle DOT Foto: Gord Price Bike boxes in Vancouver
Foto: Gord Price Foto: Rich Drdul Pucher and Buehler: Cycling for Everyone Why Traffic Calming Saves Lives
SpeedSpeed kills!kills!
Source: World Health Organization (2008) and OECD Transport Research Centre (2006) Traffic Calming in Freiburg, Germany Cheap, easy, fast, and effective improvement in cycling safety Photo: Peter Berkeley
These streets are, in effect, bike boulevards, neighborhood greenways, and local street bikeways
3,800 km of traffic-calmed streets in Berlin: ideal for cycling: 78% of ALL streets in Berlin! Shared streets: Typical traffic calming in new 7 km/hr speed German suburbs limit Shared street in Indianapolis
Photo: Ralph Buehler Foto by Peter Berkeley Blockage of through car and truck traffic but convenient cut-through for cyclists and pedestrians Traffic calming in Quebec City Photo: Transports Viables and Montreal Cheap, easy, and very effective traffic diverters Traffic Calming in Québec City
Source: Transports Viables Photo: Velo Quebec Source: Eric Anderson
Bollard blocks passage of cars
Traffic diverter in Berkeley which provides a through connection for two bike boulevards Photo: Paul Krueger
Photo: Paul Krueger
152km of bike boulevards in
Photo: Paul Krueger Vancouver Photo: Paul Krueger
Photo: Paul Krueger
Photo: Paul Krueger Cut-thrus along bike boulevards in Vancouver Photo: Paul Krueger
Photo: Paul Krueger Photo: Paul Krueger Passage for cyclists through median island at Burnaby intersection in Metro Vancouver
Pucher and Buehler:Fotos Cycling: Rich for EveryoneDrdul Photo: Richard Drdul Photo: Paul Krueger
Traffic calming in Vancouver that creates bike boulevards
Photo: Paul Krueger Photo: Mark Seinen Photos: Jonathan Maus
Traffic calming turns these streets into bikeways 112 km of bike boulevards in Portland Dutch bicycle facility selection matrix Average daily traffic Lane (vehicles / Configuration day) Street type and speed limit Urban Urban Rural local Fast traffic local street through street road road
30 km/h 50 km/h (31 60 km/h (37 70+ km/h (19 mph) mph) mph) (44+ mph) advisory bike < 2500 lane4
mixed bike lane2 or bike lane2 or 2000 to 3000 5 2-way traffic traffic1 cycletrack3 cycle track cycle track with no or low-speed centerline 3000 to 5000 service road
bike lane bike lane or > 4000 or cycle cycle track3 track Source: Peter Furth, “Cycling bike lane Infrastructure,” in Pucher bike lane or and Buehler, eds. City Cycling, 2 lanes (1+1) any or cycle 3 cycle track track MIT Press, 2012. 4 lanes (2 + 2) (does not any cycle track or low speed service road or more exist)
Cycling facilities are much cheaper to build than new or widened roadways Germany • $12-$150 million per km for new or widened roadway • $1.0-3.2 million per km for physically separated cycle track • $40k-90k per km for on-street bike lane • $100k-250k per km of bike boulevard (also known as neighborhood greenways or local street bikeways)
Roads about TEN times more expensive than even the most elaborate urban cycle tracks! Economic benefits of this cycle track exceed costs by over three-to-one!
Cycling has doubled in Sydney, Australia since installation of its cycle Photo: Fiona Campbell track network Photo: Peter Berkeley
Photo: Translink BIKE TRANSIT INTEGRATION
Photo: Translink Over 50,000 buses in the USA now come equipped with bike racks, as here in Santa Barbara
Source: Ralph Fertig Bike on LRT in NJ and Minneapolis
Photo: John Boyle Photo: Metro Transit Capacity: 3,500 bikes Bike Station next to main train station in Muenster, Germany Photo: Peter Berkeley Capacity: 150 bikes
Bike Station next to Union Station in Washington, D.C. Photo: Ralph Buehler 300 bike parking spaces in two bike cages at northern terminus of subway line in Boston
Bike-transit integration at Alewife Station on Red Line in Boston Photo: David Loutzenheiser Bikes on Caltrain in San Francisco
Photo: San Francisco Bicycling Coalition Photo: Ralph Buehler Photo: John Pucher Bi-directional cycle track and bike sharing near metro station in Montréal Metro station
BIXI bike docking station
Cycle track
Source: Vélo Québec Nice Ride in Minneapolis
Hubway Bikeshare in Cambridge, Boston, Somerville, and Brookline
Over 50 bike sharing systems in North America by end of 2013 Capital Bikeshare in Washington, DC Citi Bike in New York
• Launched May 27, 2013 • 6,000 bikes • 330 bike stations • Over 20,000 annual members
Which is the cheaper and more sensible way to get exercise? Photo: Alta Planning Photo by Susan Handy
Innovative directional
signs and bike trip Photo by Susan Handy counters in Denmark Pucher and Buehler: Cycling for Everyone Photo: Paul Krueger
Convenient, free air pumps for bikes on local
neighborhood bikeways inPucher Vancouver and Buehler: Cycling for Everyone 27 bike corrals in San Francisco
Good bike parking benefits merchants
97 bike corrals in Portland Children who bike or walk to school learn better:
• More attentive and able to concentrate • Advanced mental alertness by half a school year • More benefit for mental development than having breakfast and lunch
Source: Egelund et al. (2012). Study of over 20,000 school children Safe Routes to Schools Photos: Bike Texas Photo: Warren Salomon
Bike path leads directly to school in NL Photo: Fiona Campbell
After installation of this cycle track in Sydney, Australia, over a third of children now bike to school! Photos: Ralph Buehler Cycling training and testing course in Berlin
Most German and Dutch children take cycling lessons by the 3rd or 4th grade and must pass a police-administered cycling safety test! Source: NJ Bike Walk Coalition
Bike Training for Children in New Jersey Buehler and Pucher Promoting Walking and Cycling Cycling training course for adults
Photo: Bonnie Fenton
Foto: Amy Walker Source: Troels Andersen Guided Bicycle Tours for Seniors Bike to Work Day in San Francisco
Source: San Francisco Bicycle Coalition GIVE EMPLOYEES FREE BIKES!
The perfect zero emissions vehicles!
Photo: Troels Andersen Over 100,000 participants at LA’s fourth annual CicLAvia in October 2012
Source: Ryan Snyder CicLAvia: 9 miles of car-free streets in Los Angeles Expansion of Open Streets (Ciclovias) in the Americas (cities with at least two events per year)
Source: Sarmiento et al. (2013). Open Streets: A Healthy Epidemic. Bogota, Colombia: Universidad de los Andes. Financed by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention WNBR in 74 cities in 2010
Photo: Don Miller
The Summer Solstice naked bike ride in Seattle can be fun as well, provided you have the right body! Implementation Strategies 1. Publicize both individual and societal benefits
2. Ensure citizen participation at all stages of planning and implementation 3. Develop long-range bike plans; regularly update them 4. Implement controversial policies in stages, easiest first 5. Combine incentives for cycling and walking with disincentives for car use 6. Build alliances among ped/bike groups and with transit, environmentalists, public health, business leaders, politicians, and media 7. Coordinate ped/bike advocacy and planning through local, regional, and national organizations 8. Local political leadership is essential
New book with MIT Press http://citycyclingbook.wordpress.com
About the authors: http://policy.rutgers.edu/faculty/pucher/
http://ralphbu.wordpress.com
CONCLUSIONS
• Many economic, environmental, social, and health benefits of cycling • Even in North America, many local trips are short enough to cover by cycling • Many cities throughout the USA and Canada are vastly improving their cycling facilities • But much more could be done, and there are many ways to do it.