News: The League of American Bicyclists Bicycle Friendly States Rankings

Image courtesy of the League
of American Bicyclists

As May and Bike Month draws to a close, the League of American Bicyclists has released its latest ranking of all 50 states by how bike friendly they are. The ranking takes into consideration multiple areas that contribute to bike friendliness, including everything from legislation to infrastructure to education. It should be no surprise that the states containing highly bike friendly cities such as Portland, Minneapolis, and my own Long Beach would easily rank into the top 10 states. Most of these states, such as Washington, Minnesota, Massachusetts, and Oregon, exhibit excellent policies, education, and enforcement of legislation, while even the best states still only get middling marks for infrastructure. Those states at the bottom are, unsurprisingly, those that are least densely populated and thus least likely to attract cyclists and their ever-present drumbeat for greater infrastructure and education.

There are a few surprising results, such as how high Delaware scores, even though it is not often recognized as being particularly bike friendly, or how poorly New York State did, even though New York City is considered among the most bike friendly cities in the US. Of course, having biked now in numerous cities across the cities, albeit for rather short periods of time in some cities, it is encouraging to see not only how much infrastructure is being built, but also how cycling is continuing to be adopted by those in urban environments as more than just recreation, but as a means of transit on a regular basis.

Check out how your state did by going to the League of American Bicyclists website and make sure to view the details of your own particular state. Then, take a moment to consider signing up for your local bicycling advocacy organization to help support making cycling safer and more more accessible to everyone!