PITTSBURGH, PA (June 9, 2020) People For Bikes, one of the nation’s leading organizations dedicated to making bicycling safer, more convenient, and appealing for everyone has named Pittsburgh among the top 20 cities in the United States for people on bicycles.
For the first time, Pittsburgh has broken into the top tier of the more than 550 cities and towns included in the data-driven analysis by rounding out the top 20 in this year’s annual ratings. Last year the City was ranked 170th.
PeopleForBikes City Ratings evaluate communities across five key indicators: Ridership (how many people are riding bikes), Safety (how safe is it to ride bikes), Network (how easy is it for people to bike where they want to go), Reach (how well the network serves all parts of the community), and Acceleration (how fast the community is working to improve biking).
Pittsburgh performed particularly well in terms of both safety and acceleration. “The data shows Pittsburgh is showing real progress in making it easier for people to use bicycles as a safe, affordable, and enjoyable way to get around our compact city,” said Karina Ricks, Director of Pittsburgh’s Department of Mobility and Infrastructure.
The progress is real. This year Pittsburgh completed a new Bicycle Master Plan (https://pittsburghpa.gov/domi/bikeplan) and is working with neighborhoods across the city to add or enhance 30 miles of bicycle facilities this year that are safe and inviting for novice or experienced riders of all ages and abilities. In response to the COVID health crisis, the city has empowered residents to help establish a network of neighborhood slow streets to enable both physical activity and safe, easy, non-motorized travel to parks, transit and everyday destinations (https://pittsburghpa.gov/domi/covid-19).
Making the top 20 is a significant accomplishment, but Pittsburgh will have to work hard to stay at the top. “Now in its third year, the City Ratings create a complete picture of bicycling in cities based on measurable factors,” says Rebecca Davies, PeopleForBikes’ bicycle networks data manager. “Top scorers are cities of all types and geographies who have succeeded in different ways, including cities that have made strong historical investments in active transportation as well as cities pursuing ambitious plans to rapidly implement high-quality bicycle networks on their streets.”
Data for the ratings comes from existing sources (including the U.S. Census American Community Survey and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System), as well as sources developed by the PeopleForBikes team to capture city-specific data based on mapping, city planning information and survey responses from community members. This year, individuals submitted a record-breaking 68,000 surveys. From these sources, 184 calculations are performed per city to determine the five category scores, as well as a city or town’s overall score. Read more about the methodology here: https://cityratings.peopleforbikes.org/methodology/ .
“City Ratings shows us what works: Places that have built better places to ride are seeing the benefits,” said Kyle Wagenschutz, director of local innovation for PeopleForBikes. “Our top scoring cities showcase the diverse ways that bicycling is thriving as a source of transportation, recreation, and inspiration. From San Luis Obispo, CA to Washington, DC — and all the places in between — city leaders are recognizing bike networks help relieve traffic congestion, increase mobility and opportunity and make our cities healthier.”
City Ratings is a key component of the PlacesForBikes program, which provides measurement tools, guidance, peer networking and storytelling to help U.S. cities quickly plan, build and promote great places to ride of all kinds. PlacesForBikes is supported by a generous grant from Trek Bicycle Corporation, as well as contributions from other bike businesses, foundations and individuals.
For more information contact Karina Ricks at karina.ricks@pittsburghpa.gov
RESOURCES
For complete results and additional program details, please visit cityratings.peopleforbikes.org .
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