8 of the Most Bike-Friendly Cities in the U.S.
From EcoWatch.com
By: Linnea Harris
Copenhagen and Amsterdam are famous for their sprawling bike paths and hoards of cyclists, but some U.S. cities are also on the biking bandwagon.
Transportation is the largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, and it’s clear that if we don’t curb our car usage, runaway climate change will only worsen. The World Health Organization finds that investments in policies that promote bicycling and walking are crucial for mitigating climate change and protecting the environment. By choosing to bike over riding in the car just once a day, the average person can reduce their transportation-related carbon emissions by 67%.
These U.S. cities are setting an example for how people-powered transportation can look. PeopleforBikes evaluates cities for their bikeability based on how many people ride bikes, the ease and safety of biking, the breadth of neighborhoods serviced by bike infrastructure, and how quickly the bike network is expanding. These ratings change a bit every year, but there are a few that consistently jostle for top positions.
If you’re looking to plan a vacation somewhere where you can see the sights via bike, or choosing your next dwelling place based on bikeability, here are a few of the most bike-friendly cities in the United States.
Boulder, Colorado
Take in views of the Rocky Mountains from a bicycle in Boulder. This city of over 100,000 took first place in PeopleForBikes’s 2019 ratings of the most bike-friendly cities in the U.S., and riding down its 300 miles of bikeway, it’s easy to see why — not to mention that Boulder sees 300 days of sunshine a year. Across the city you’ll see multi-use paths that are separate from car traffic, and designated underpasses for cyclists and pedestrians. People in Boulder are 20 times more likely to bike to workthan the average American, but if you get caught in the rain and need to hop on a local bus, the whole fleet is equipped with bike racks. Dozens of self-service kiosks across the city rent out bikes, courtesy of Boulder Bcycle.
