Dr. Ralph Buehler: “Making the National Capitol Region the Next Cycling Capital of the USA:...

Ralph Buehler, Virginia Tech and John Pucher, Rutgers University

Making the National Capital Region the Next Cycling

Capital of the USA: Opportunities and Lessons from

Home and Abroad

Photo: Susan Handy Photo: Ralph BuehlerPhoto: SF Bicycle CoalitionPhoto: Ralph Buehler

Why Cycling?

Economical: Affordable by everyone, requiring minimal costs for individuals and governments

Good for business: Generate retail sales and profits from tourism

Environmentally friendly: Virtually no pollution Space-efficient: Uses little space for operation and

parking 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 America, and Australia, 1999-2008

USA* ('09)

Australi

a* ('

06)

USA ('09)

Canad

a* ('

06)

UK ('08)

Irelan

d* ('06)

France

('08)

Austria

('05)

Norway

('01)

Belgiu

m ('

99)

Finlan

d ('05)

Sweden

('06)

Germ

any ('

08)

Denm

ark ('

08)

Nether

lands (

'08)0.0

5.0

10.0

15.0

20.0

25.0

30.0

0.5 11 1 2 2 3

4 4

89 9

10

18

26

Per

cent

of

trip

s by

cyc

ling

Source: Pucher, J., Buehler, R. (eds.) City Cycling. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2012

Bike Mode Share of Work Commuters in the USA (2007) and Canada (2006)

Source: Pucher, J., Buehler, R., Seinen, M. 2011 “Bicycling Renaissance in North America? An Update and Re-Assessment of Cycling Trends and Policies,” Transportation Research A, Vol. 45, No. 6, pp. 451-475.

Source: Pucher, Dill, and Handy, “Infrastructure, Programs, and Policies to Increase Bicycling,” Preventive Medicine, Jan 2010, Vol. 50, S.1, pp. S106-S125.

Nuremburg('76-'12)

Berlin('92-'08)

Cologne('76-'09)

Munich('91-'11)

Freiburg('82-'12)

Muenster ('82-'10) Amsterdam('70-'10)

Copenhagen('98-'10)

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

4

76 6

15

29

25 25

1213

12

14

27

35

3738

Per

cent

of a

ll tr

ips

Rebound of Bike Mode Share of Trips in German, Dutch, and Danish Cities

New Y

ork

Los A

ngeles

Chicago

Bosto

n

Toron

to

New O

rlean

s

Denve

r

Was

hingt

on

Min

neapoli

s

Seattl

e

San F

rancis

co

Mon

treal

Vanco

uver

Portla

nd0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

6.0

7.0

0.3

0.6

0.3

0.90.8

0.9 0.90.8

1.61.5

1 1

1.7

1.10.9

1.1

1.5

1.8

2.4 2.42.6

3.3

3.63.7 3.7

4.1

4.4

6.8

1990 (USA) / 1996 (Canada)

2011 (USA and Canada)

Bik

e Sh

are

of R

egul

ar C

omm

utes

*

* 2011 figures for Canadian cities are preliminary esti-mates

Boom in Cycling to Work in 14 Large US and Canadian Cities

Source: Pucher, J. and Buehler, R. City Cycling, MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass, 2012.

Source: Buehler, R., Hamre, A., Sonenklar, D., & P. Goger. 2013. Determinants of Cycling in Washington, DC. Report for U. S. Department of Transportation, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Washington, D.C. and MAUTC.

Trend in Number of Regular Bicycle Commuters in Washington, DC and Adjacent jurisdictions, 1990-2011

1990 Census 2000 Census ACS 20110

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

10,000

12,000

14,000

16,000

2,2923,035

7,741

916

1,231

2,034

891

773

1,337

967

669

1,150

661

803

1,452

359

413

770

Alexandria City, VA

Arlington County, VA

Fairfax County, VA

Prince George's County, MD

Montgomery County, MD

Washington, DC

3.4x

2.2x1.5x1.2x2.2x2.1x

Increase

Trend in Bike Mode Share of all Trips in Washington, DC and Adjacent Jurisdictions, 1994-2008


0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1

1.2

1.4

1.6

1.3

0.6

0.5

0.4

0.5

0.2

1.5

1.1

0.8

0.6

0.3

0.4

1994 2008

Spatial Variation in Bicycle Mode Share of Work Commuters in Washington, D.C. Area, 2005-2009

Pucher, J., Buehler, R., Seinen, M. 2011 “Bicycling Renaissance in North America? An Update and Re-Assessment of Cycling Trends and Policies,” Transportation Research A, Vol. 45, No. 6, pp. 451-475.

Cycling levels in the Washington DC Region have increased…

…. but the cycling boom is limited to certain areas, mainly in parts of or close to the ‘urban core’ of the

region.

0<2.

5km

2.5k

m<

4.5k

m

4.5k

m-6

.5km

0<2.

5km

2.5k

m<

4.5k

m

4.5<

6.5k

m

0<2.

5km

2.5k

m<

4.5k

m

4.5k

m-6

.5km

0<2.

5km

2.5k

m<

4.5k

m

5<7.

5km

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

2 2 1

1612

7

31

24

18

29

35

24

Per

cen

t of

tri

ps

by

cycl

ing

USA GER DK NL

Trip distance category

Share of Cycling for Short Trips


~27% of all trips in the U.S. were a mile or shorter in 2009

~41% of all trips were shorter than two miles

~36% of all trips<2 miles in DC Region

Lots of Potential for Increased Cycling:

Many daily trips in American urban areas and the DC Region are short

enough to bike!

Europeans cycle for many trip purposes

Higher Share of Utilitarian Bike Trips in the DC Region than Other US Urban Areas,2007/2008

Commute/Work Related

Shopping/Personal Business

School/Religious/Visit Friends

Recreation/Entertainment

Utilitarian Non - Utilitarian

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

1718 18

47Washington D.C. Region U.S. Urbanized Areas

Per

cen

t of

Bik

e T

rip

s


Commute/Work Related

Shopping/Personal Business

School/Religious/Visit Friends

Recreation/Entertainment

Utilitarian Non - Utilitarian

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

41

16

19 1917

18 18

47Washington D.C. Region U.S. Urbanized Areas

Per

cen

t of

Bik

e T

rip

s

USA UK Canada Germany Denmark Netherlands10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

50%

55%

60%

25%27%

30%

49%

55%56%

Per

cent

of

trip

s by

wom

enWomen’s Share of Bike Trips in

Europe and North America


0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 400

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Copenhagen

Amsterdam

Berlin

Vancouver

MontrealToronto

PortlandMinneapolis

ChicagoSan Francisco

Melbourne

Sydney

Tokyo

Percent of trips by bicycle

Per

cen

t of

bic

ycli

sts

wh

o ar

e fe

mal

e

Washington

Source: Pucher, J., Buehler, R. (eds.), City Cycling. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2012

Bicycle Mode Share of Trips and Percentage of Female Cyclists in Large Cities

Source: Susan Handy

5-15

16-2

4

25-3

9

40-6

5

65 +

0-16

17-2

9

30-5

9

60-6

5

65+

0-17

18-2

5

26-4

4

45-5

9

60-6

5

65 +

10-1

9'

20-2

9

30-3

9

40-4

9

50-5

9

60-6

9

70-7

4

0-17

18-2

5

26-4

4

45-6

4

65 +

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

3 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.5 2 2 21 1

14

9 9 911

9

32

20

14 14 15 15 15

40

2521 22 23

Age Group

Per

cen

t of

tri

ps

by

cyc

ling NL

USA

GER

DK

UK

Bike Mode Share of Trips by Age Group


Cycling for all ages

Foto by Marie Demers

No car One car

Two and more cars

LowestQuartile

MidQuartiles

HighestQuartile

White AfricanAmerican

Other

Cars in HH HH Income Ethnicity

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

13

29

58

25

34

41

88

6 610

23

67

25

49

26

82

711

Washington D.C. Region U.S. Urbanized Areas

Per

cen

t of

Bik

e T

rip

s

20

Percent of Bike Trips by Group in the D.C. Region vs. U.S. Averages for Urbanized Areas, 2008/2009.


Higher % of trips by cyclists w/o and 1 car

Higher % of trips by cyclists in

4th quartile

High % of ‘white’

The Washington DC Region has a high share of work trips by bicycle,

but…

….DC area cyclists are more likely men, younger than 40, in higher income groups, and

white.

• 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

Make Cycling Safe for Everyone !

NL DK GER UK USA0.0

2.0

4.0

6.0

8.0

10.0

12.0

14.0

16.0

18.0

20.0

1.11.6 1.6

3.3

5.5

1.6 1.5

4.7

5.7

33.5*

Cylists killed per 100 million km cycled

Cylists injured per 10 million km cycled

Fat

alit

itie

s an

d in

juri

es p

er t

rip

and

per

kilo

met

er

Cyclist Fatality and Injury Rates, 2007-2010


0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160T

otal

cyc

list f

atal

ities

rela

tive

to 1

970

(=10

0)

USA

UK

Denmark

Germany

Netherlands

Trends in Cyclist Fatalities

Source: Pucher and Buehler (eds.), City Cycling. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2012

SAFETY IN NUMBERS

•As levels of cycling increase, injury and fatality rates per trip and per km traveled fall dramatically

•Thus, if we can increase cycling, it will almost inevitably be safer

Source: City of Portland (2013)

Sharp increase in cycling safety in Portland as cycling levels rose

70% fall in crash rate

6-fold increase in bike trips

0.0 1.0 2.0 3.0 4.00.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

6.0

7.0

8.0

9.0

Chicago

Washington

Toronto

Montréal

San Francisco

Vancouver

Minneapolis

Portland

Bike Mode Share of Workers

An

nu

al F

atal

itie

s p

er 1

0,00

0 C

ycli

sts

New York

Safety in Numbers: Cyclist fatality rate

falls as cycling levels increase.

Source: Pucher and Buehler, City Cycling.Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2012

Cycling in the Washington DC Region is safer than in NYC and Chicago, …

…. but Portland, Minneapolis, San Francisco and European cities are safer than DC.

Pro-car policies in European cities in 1950s and 1960s caused huge decline in walking and cycling

Dramatic policy turn-around since 1970s to limit car use and promote cycling, walking, and public transport in Dutch, Danish, and German cities

Public Policies Crucial to Promote Cycling

1950s 1960s TodaySource: City of Freiburg

How to Encourage More Cycling while Improving Safety

• Better cycling facilities

• Integration of bike 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

Trend in Bike Paths and Lanes per 100,000 Population in Nine Large North American Cities, 2000-2010

New York Chicago Toronto San Francisco

Vancouver Montréal Washington Minneapolis Portland0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

3 46

10

1619

17

39

60

8 911

15

2225

27

7073

2000 2010

Kilo

met

ers

of L

anes

an

d P

ath

s p

er 1

00,0

00 P

opu

lati

on

Cycling Policies in the DC Region

1970s: Plans for on-street facilities, but focus on off-street shared-use trails (often together with the NPS)

1980s/early 1990s: only few new pro-bike initiatives Building on the progress of the late 1990s, bicycle

planning experienced a renaissance in the 2000s. New focus on bike lanes and ‘innovative’ measures

Bike Lanes and Paved Off-Street Paths per Square Mile of Land Area, 2011

Washington, DC Arlington County Alexandria City Fairfax County Montgomery County

Prince George's County

0.00

0.20

0.40

0.60

0.80

1.00

1.20

1.40

1.60

1.80

2.00

0.81

1.86

0.86

0.51

0.29

0.19

0.98

1.12

0.84

0.06 0.03 0.01

Miles of Paved Trails per Square Mile

Miles of Lanes per Square Mile

Mile

s of

Lan

es o

r T

rails

per

Sq

uar

e M

ile

Separate Bikeways in Germany

Sources: City of Freiburg & Pucher

Stone Arch Bridge in Minneapolis

Greenway in Minneapolis

Source: Buehler

One-way cycle track in The Hague

Source: Peter Furth

Raised curb between cycle track and traffic lane

Almost 100km of 2-way cycle tracks in Montreal

Separation from traffic via bollards and parked cars

Separation from traffic via concrete barriers

Photo: Peter Furth Photo: Velo Quebec

Source: Buehler

DC

REGION

Pennsylvania Avenue

15th Street

Mount Vernon Trail

15th Street

Dutch Bicycle Facility Selection Matrix

Lane Configuration

Average daily traffic

(vehicles / day) Street type and speed limit

Urban local street

Urban through street

Rural local road

Fast traffic road

30 km/h (19 mph)

50 km/h (31 mph)

60 km/h (37 mph)

70+ km/h (44+ mph)

2-way traffic with no

centerline

< 2500

mixed traffic1

bike lane2 or cycletrack3

advisory bike lane4

cycle track or low-speed service road

2000 to 3000 bike lane2 or cycle track5

3000 to 5000

> 4000 bike lane or cycle

track

bike lane or cycle track3

2 lanes (1+1) any bike lane or cycle

track

bike lane or cycle track3

4 lanes (2 + 2) or more

any (does not

exist) cycle track or low speed service road

Source: Peter Furth, “Cycling Infrastructure,” in Pucher

and Buehler, eds. City Cycling, MIT Press, 2012.

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 car parking

Bike lanes used for truck deliveries

Dooring of cyclists

Bike bridge over Yarra River in

Melbourne, Australia

Bike bridge over Ems River in Muenster,

Germany

Crucial to provide river crossings for cyclists

Provision of cycle track at this key underpass in Montreal

Photo: Velo Quebec

Separation from traffic via concrete barriers AND bollards

14 Street Bridge

Intersection in Copenhagen, with Separate Crossings for Pedestrians and Cyclists

Red bike lanes for intersection crossings, connected with red brick sidepaths on both sides of every road

Source: City of Muenster, Germany

Pucher: Walking and Cycling for Health

Bike lane, advance stop line, and priority signal for cyclists in Muenster

Advanced stop line for cyclists in Berlin

Advanced stop line and bike box in Portland

Bike Box in Alexandria, VA

Source: Hillary Poole

Green wave for cyclists in

Odense, Denmark

Troels Andersen, “Cycling in Odense, Denmark”

Express bikeways

for commuters

Bike speed indicators

Raised curb protects

bike path from cars

Traffic Calming of Residential Neighborhoods• Speed limited by law to 30km per hour (19mph) or less

• Physical measures that force cars to slow down:

• Road narrowing, zigzag routing, chicanes

• Raised intersections and crosswalks

• Traffic circles

• Speed humps and bumps

• Mid-block closures and artificial dead-ends

• Bulb-outs at intersections and crosswalks, with sidewalk widening

Source: World Health Organization (2008) and OECD Transport Research Centre (2006)

Why Traffic Calming Saves Lives

Speed kills!

Speed kills!

Convenient bike cut-thru for cyclists

Foto by Peter Berkeley

Traffic Calming in Québec City

Source: Transports Viables

Traffic calming in Quebec City

and MontrealCheap, easy, and very effective traffic diverters

Photo: Transports Viables

Photo: Velo Quebec

Typical traffic calming in new German suburbs

7 km/hr speed limit

Bike Boulevards in Portland

Traffic calming turns these streets into bikeways

Fotos: Jonathan Maus

(in 15 US cities in 2012)

Source: City of Berlin

1,100 km of bicycling facilities in Berlin plus 3,800 km of traffic calmed streets = 10% bike share of all trips

Source: City of Berlin, Burden, Buehler

The Washington DC Region has greatly expanded its bicycle infrastructure and implemented innovative measures, but…

…. it does not have a comprehensive network of bicycle facilities and intersection treatments that allows cyclists to get from A to B without cycling

in heavy or higher speed car traffic.

Bike Parking Spaces per 100,000 Residents, 2008

Sydne

y

Melb

ourn

e

San F

rancis

co

Mon

tréal

Portla

ndBerl

in

Was

hingto

n

Chicag

o

Toron

to

Minn

eapo

lis

Copen

hage

n

Amsterd

am

0

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

10,000

12,000

73 148466

802 725 857 1,056 1,121 1,286

4,599

6,960

30,272

Bik

e P

ark

ing

Sp

aces

per

100

,000

Pop

ula

tion


Conversion of Car Parking to Bike Parking

27 bike corrals in San Francisco

95 bike corrals in Portland

E-Street in DC

King Street in Alexandria

Bike Parking and Showers At Work Increase Likelihood to Commute by Bike

Note: Relative to 1. Above 1=more likely. Below 1=less likely.

Buehler, R. 2012. “Determinants of Bicycle Commuting in the Washington, D.C. Region: The Role of Bicycle Parking, Cyclist Showers, and Free Car Parking at Work,” Transportation Research Part D: Transportation and Environment Vol. 17, No. 7, pp. 525-531.

Over 50,000 buses in the USA now come equipped with bike racks

Photo: Metro Transit

Bike on LRT in NJ and Minneapolis

Photo: Metro TransitPhoto: John Boyle

Photo: John PucherPhoto: Ralph Buehler

Bikes on Caltrain in San Francisco

Photo: San Francisco Bicycling Coalition

Bi-directional cycle track and bike sharing near metro station in Montréal

Source: Vélo Québec

BIXI bike docking station

Metro station

Cycle track

Bike Station next to main train station in Muenster, Germany

Photo: Peter Berkeley

Capacity: 3,500 bikes

Bike Station next to Union Station in Washington, D.C.

Photo: Ralph Buehler

Nice Ride in Minneapolis

Capital Bikeshare in Washington, DC

Hubway Bikeshare in Cambridge, Boston, Somerville, and Brookline

Over 20 bike sharing systems in North America

Who are the ‘bike-sharers’ in the Washington DC Region?

Mal

e

Fem

ale

Asi

an

Bla

ck

Whi

te

His

pani

c

Oth

er

16-2

4

25-3

4

35-4

4

45-5

4

55+

Stud

ent

Not

Stu

dent

Gender/Sex Race/Ethnicity Age Student Status

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

65

35

3

8

81

3 4 5

24

31

23

1714

86

4852

85

78

4 3

17

43

17 16

7

n.a. n.a.

55

45

73

81

5 5

12

55

20

105

14

86Area Cyclists Short-term CaBi Users Annual CaBi Members

Per

cen

t

Source: Buehler et al. 2012. Are Bikeshare Users Different from Regular Cyclists? A First Look at Short-Term Users,Annual Members, and Area Cyclists in the Washington, DC Region

The Washington DC region is a national leader in bikesharing…

…but CaBi has fewer bikes and docking stations than systems in Paris, London, Montreal, and NYC.

Traffic Education

• Improved motorist training, with much more emphasis on how to avoid endangering pedestrians and cyclists

• Compulsory traffic safety lessons for all school children by the age of 10, with testing by traffic police on actual traffic test courses, to ensure safe and defensive walking and cycling by an early age (as in the Netherlands and Germany)

German traffic laws generally favor cyclists and pedestrians over motorists

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!

Bike path leads directly to school in NL

Innovative directional signs and bike trip

counters in Denmark

Photo by Susan Handy

Photo by Susan Handy

Summer Streets in New York City attracts 200,000 participants on

Saturdays in August

Source: Troels Andersen

Guided Bicycle Tours for Seniors

Summary: Cycling in the DC Region

Between 1990 and 2013, cycling levels and bike infrastructure supply have increased;

‘Bike-commuter’ region; National leader in bikesharing; Expansive shared-use trail network; Experimentation with innovative facilities (cycle tracks, color, bike boxes); ‘Urban core’ jurisdictions do most—particularly the District; Many challenges for cycling remain:

Bike lane and path network not complete; Few bicycle-friendly intersection; Little use of traffic calming in neighborhoods; Uneven distribution of cyclists vs. population; Lack of training and enforcement.


Proposed Measures to Increase Cycling in the Washington DC Region

1. Provide a comprehensive package of integrated measures

2. Build a network of integrated bikeways with intersections that facilitate cycling

3. Provide good bike parking at key destinations and public transport stations

4. Expand CaBi

5. Provide convenient information and promotional events

6. Introduce individualized marketing to target specific groups

7. Improve cyclist education and expand bike to school programs

8. Improve motorist training, licensing, and traffic enforcement

9. Restrict car use through traffic calming, car-free zones, and less parking

10. Design communities to be compact, mixed-use, and bikeable

11. Coordinate across jurisdictional boundaries

New book with MIT Press

http://citycyclingbook.wordpress.com

About the authors:

http://ralphbu.wordpress.com

http://policy.rutgers.edu/faculty/pucher

http://ralphbu.wordpress.com/

http://ralphbu.wordpress.com/



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