2007
Benchmarking Report “Bicycling and Walking
in the U.S.”
The
Thunderhead Alliance Benchmarking Project is an
on-going effort to collect and analyze data on bicycling
and walking in all 50 states and at least the 50
most-populated U.S. cities. Thunderhead will continue
to expand the scope of this project while refining
its methods. This first biennial report was released
August 29, 2007. The next report is scheduled for
publication in the fall of 2009.
Click
the link below with the left mouse button to open;
click with the right mouse button and choose "save
as" to download the file:
To
request graph files and illustrations from this
report contact Kristen "at"
thunderheadalliance.org
Thunderhead
Organizations: Download
a template for your local press release [Word
Document]
Main
Findings from 2007 Benchmarking Report:
A
positive relationship exists between the built
environment and levels of biking and walking.
Where
levels of biking and walking are higher, bicycle
and pedestrian safety is greater.
Cities
with strong Thunderhead organizations generally
have high levels of biking and walking.
Higher
levels of biking and walking coincide with lower
levels of obesity, high blood pressure and diabetes
and higher levels of adults meeting recommended
levels of daily physical activity. This suggests
that increased biking and walking would contribute
to a healthier society.
Data
revealed that while some cities and states lead
others as models for bicycle and pedestrian
policies and provisions, all states and cities
have a need for improvement.
Data
Collected for 2007 Benchmarking Report:
Bicycling and walking levels and demographics
Bicycle
and pedestrian fatalities
Bicycle
and pedestrian policies and provisions
Funding
for bicycle and pedestrian projects
Bicycle
and pedestrian staffing levels
Written
policies on bicycling and walking
Bicycle
infrastructure including bike lanes, paths,
signed bike routes, and bicycle parking
Bike-transit
integration including presence of bike racks
on buses, bike parking at transit stops, and
hours per week that bicycles are allowed on
trains
Public
health indicators including levels of obesity,
physical activity, diabetes, and high blood
pressure.
Detailed
report data will be available for download soon.
Contact kristen "at"
thunderheadalliance.org for questions on
data.
Benchmarking
Project Objectives
(1)
Improve Data Collection and Availability
Thunderhead’s
Benchmarking Project identifies gaps in collection
and availability of data on bicycling and walking.
This project also provides data on cycling and
walking to states and cities in a standardized
format that otherwise does not exist.
(2)
Measure Progress and Evaluate Results
Thunderhead’s
Benchmarking Project provides data to Thunderhead
member organizations and government officials
in a format that helps them measure their progress
towards increasing bicycling and walking and evaluate
the results of their efforts.
(3)
Support Efforts to Increase Bicycling and Walking
Ultimately,
this Benchmarking Project supports the efforts
of bicycle and pedestrian advocacy organizations
and government officials to increase bicycling
and walking in their communities. This project
also provides a means for cities and states to
compare themselves to one another, highlight and
praise successes, encourage communities making
progress, and make communities aware of areas
needing more effort.
The
Thunderhead Alliance Benchmarking Project is an
on-going effort to collect and analyze data on bicycling
and walking in all 50 states and at least the 50
most-populated U.S. cities. Thunderhead will continue
to expand the scope of this project while refining
its methods. This first biennial report was released
August 29, 2007. The next report is scheduled for
publication in the fall of 2009.