Over the past year, Americans have been biking at notably high levels. According to the BBC, the demand for bikes in 2020 skyrocketed, not just in the U.S., but internationally. Most gyms and fitness facilities shut down at the onset of the pandemic, and in turn, global bike sales surged as people sought out ways to exercise in a socially distant, COVID-safe manner.
Not only does biking provide health benefits such as increasing stamina and reducing chronic stress, but for many, it also has become a preferred mode of transportation.
In cities where residents have been more reluctant to use public transit during the pandemic, bicycling is an increasingly popular transportation alternative. Environmentalists and seasoned cyclists alike are hopeful that this biking boom spells positive change for the future of biking in cities, including reduced carbon emissions from passenger vehicles and a higher precedent for citywide bicyclist safety regulations.
As the weather continues to warm, the number of bicyclists on the roads will rise. May is National Bike Month, and to honor it this year, the research team at Insurify selected the best city for bicyclists in each state. For bicyclists in these communities, their city’s dedication to cyclist safety and wellbeing is paramount to better, safer rides for all.
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Selection Process for Insurify’s 2021 Best Biking Cities Awards
The data scientists at Insurify, a site to compare home insurance quotes, analyzed proprietary and public data to identify the most bike-friendly city in each state.
Cities were ranked based on a composite score of factors such as overall bike friendliness, bike commuting prevalence, bike incidents (including crashes, theft, or other safety hazards), and DUI and passing violation rates.
Overall quality for bicyclists is from PeopleForBikes’ City Ratings index. PeopleForBikes, a nonprofit organization that works with federal, state, and local governments to enforce safe biking regulations, rated over 600 U.S. cities on a five-star scale for their commitment to the safety and wellbeing of the cyclist community. The percentage of commuters who bike in each city was gleaned from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The prevalence of bike incidents by city was gathered from Bikewise.org, a cyclist incident reporting site. Cities with lower rates of these incidents received a higher score.
Insurify’s data scientists referred to their database of over 4 million car insurance applications to determine citywide rates of DUIs and passing violations. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), vehicle non-occupants, including cyclists, make up 13% of DUI fatalities.
Illegal passing additionally presents a danger for cyclists on the road, so cities with lower rates of these infractions scored higher in Insurify’s analysis.
States with insufficient municipal data (Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Hawaii, and West Virginia) were excluded from the analysis.
The following is a list of the most bike-friendly cities in every other state:
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1. Tucson, Arizona
Image Credit: tonda / istockphoto.
2. Cupertino, California
Image Credit: Justin Ormont / Wiki Commons.
3. Denver, Colorado
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4. Norwalk, Connecticut
Image Credit: miromiro/istockphoto.
5. Wilmington, Delaware
Image Credit: ChrisBoswell / istockphoto.
6. Melbourne, Florida
Image Credit: Thomas_Kelley/istockphoto.
7. Albany, Georgia
Image Credit: Twister3328 / Wiki Commons.
8. Sandpoint, Idaho
Image Credit: jlh_lunasea.
9. Evanston, Illinois
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
10. Carmel, Indiana
Image Credit: Alejandra Mejia/ istockphoto.
11. Iowa City, Iowa
Image Credit: dosecreative/istockphoto.
12. Shawnee, Kansas
Image Credit: Courtesy of Official Johnson County Website.
13. Louisville, Kentucky
Image Credit: hstiver / istockphoto.
14. Kenner, Louisiana
Image Credit: Infrogmation of New Orleans / Wiki Commons.
15. Portland, Maine
Image Credit: Deposit Photos.
16. Baltimore, Maryland
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17. Boston, Massachusetts
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
18. Detroit, Michigan
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19. Maple Grove, Minnesota
Image Credit: Jacob Boomsma/istockphoto.
20. Gulfport , Mississippi
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21. Lee’s Summit, Missouri
Image Credit: Glenn Kinyon / Wiki Commons.
22. Missoula, Montana
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23. Grand Island, Nebraska
Image Credit: Brad Mellema / Wiki Commons.
24. Las Vegas, Nevada
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
25. Nashua, New Hampshire
Image Credit: Darwin Carozza/istockphoto.
26. Camden,New Jersey
Image Credit: shardydmd / istockphoto.
27. Albuquerque, New Mexico
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
28. Albany, New York
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
29. Charlotte, North Carolina
Image Credit: Sean Pavone / istockphoto.
30. Grand Forks, North Dakota
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31. Columbus, Ohio
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
32. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
33. Portland, Oregon
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
34. Warren, Pennsylvania
Image Credit: Althom/istockphoto.
35. Cranston, Rhode Island
Image Credit: thisisbossi / istockphoto.
36. Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
Image Credit: Wiki Commons.
37. Rapid City, South Dakota
Image Credit: James_Gabbert/istockphoto.
38. Memphis, Tennessee
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
39. Austin, Texas
Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.
40. Orem, Utah
Image Credit: Ntsimp / Wiki Commons.
41. Middlebury, Vermont
Image Credit: Jd4508 / Wiki Commons.
42. Roanoke, Virginia
Image Credit: Deposit Photos.
43. Redmond, Washington
Image Credit: Chrismiceli / Wiki Commons.
44. La Crosse, Wisconsin
Image Credit: Credit: Jason_Ray_Photography / istockphoto.
45. Cheyenne, Wyoming
Related:
This article originally appeared on Insurify.com and was syndicated by MediaFeed.org.
Image Credit: Vasiliymeshko / WikiMedia Commons.
