Everybody’s Gone Biking USA
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iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — Believe it or not, pretty soon it’ll be nice enough in most areas of the country to get outside and do things that don’t involve shivering and shoveling.
One of America’s favorite outdoor pastimes, according to a study commissioned for the nonprofit PeopleForBikes, happens to be bicycling.
Contrary to other reports that indicated participation is far lower, PeopleForBikes says that just over a third of Americans ages three and up rode a bike at least once last year.
PeopleForBikes’ President Tim Blumenthal says its U.S. Bicycling Participation Benchmarking Report is comprehensive whereas other studies seem to focus on single aspects of bicycling. Blumenthal says his study covers recreational biking, transportation riding and other uses for bikes.
But even though 57 percent of people who biked in 2014 did so for recreation, the study found that 48 percent of Americans don’t have access to bikes and 52 percent are concerned about the danger of getting into an accident with a vehicle.
However, Blumenthal says he sees plenty of potential in reaching millions of people who otherwise might not think biking is in their spring and summer plans.
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