Seattle cycling fever remains high post-pandemic
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Pandemic-era cycling fever appears to be lingering in the Seattle area, but the region still trails cities like Portland, San Francisco and Salt Lake City.
Driving the news: The number of average daily bike trips per 1,000 people increased in the Seattle metro area from 27 to 33 between 2019 and 2022, according to new mobility data firm StreetLight Data.
- That translates to 6,000 more trips daily and nearly 2.2 million more trips annually per 1 million people.
Why it matters: The city has made significant progress building protected bike lanes in the last five years, said Tom Fucoloro, the editor of Seattle Bike Blog and the author of "Biking Uphill in the Rain."
Yes, but: There are still neighborhoods without protected lanes, Fucoloro reported.
- And people may be nervous about urban riding due to recent spikes in "traffic violence" — bicyclists and pedestrians being killed by cars and trucks, Cascade Bicycle Club spokesperson Paul Tolmé told Axios.
Zoom in: Seattle's geography, with its deep north-to-south glacial cuts, has a disadvantage compared to Portland and San Francisco when it comes to creating safe bike lanes that run east and west, said Fucoloro.
- Average daily bike trips per 1,000 people in the San Francisco metro area increased from 42 to 65 between 2019 and 2022, while in the Portland metro area, those trips decreased from 48 to 44 in that same period, per the data.
- Streetlight Data used GPS and other location data to measure urban transportation patterns.
By the numbers: The annual nationwide average for daily bike trips grew 37% between 2019 and 2022, and grew in almost every major U.S. metro area.
- Most cycling activity is concentrated in and around big cities; the 100 largest metros accounted for 77% of bike activity nationwide in 2022, up from 72% in 2019.
Be smart: Cascade Bicycle Club offers courses for riders of all experience levels.
The more bikes there are on the road and the more people take time to choose the safest (and not just the most direct) routes, the better riding will be for everyone, said Tolmé.