Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
Streetsblog.net

Getting More Women on the Bike

10:28 AM EDT on March 19, 2010

326087276_33bcf7c8a4.jpgMore women on bikes means healthier bike facilities for all. (Photo: boxchain via Flickr)

Are you a woman who rides a bicycle? Or are you a woman who would like to ride a bicycle? Then the Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals (APBP) needs you to participate in a survey about women and girls and bicycling. (If you're not a woman, perhaps you know a few females who fit into these categories.) It takes about 10-15 minutes to complete. And the data will provide useful information for planners about why women cycle -- and why they don't.

The issue of women and cycling has gotten increasing attention over the last few months, in large part because of an article in Scientific American that discussed the idea of women as an "indicator species" for healthy cycling environments. In the US, what they indicate is not great -- men riding bicycles outnumber women by two to one. Women, it turns out, are statistically less likely to ride in places that lack adequate protections for people on bicycles. In European countries with good cycling infrastructure, such as the Netherlands, this gender disparity doesn't exist. Things could be different here, too, if planners change their attitudes.

To support people around the country working to encourage women cyclists, the APBP is also hosting a webinar titled "Writing Women Back Into Bicycling" on March 31. Participation is free. It should be a great chance to get ideas and resources from some dedicated advocates and researchers about how to get more women riding the streets and roads of America. Which would be a great thing for everyone.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Why We Care About Some Transportation Tragedies More Than Others

Why do we respond to major transportation disasters with so much urgency — and why don't we count our collective car crash epidemic among them?

March 28, 2024

The Toll of History: MTA Board Approves $15 Congestion Pricing Fee

New York City's first-in-the-nation congestion pricing tolls are one historic step closer to reality after Wednesday's 11-1 MTA board vote. Next step: all those pesky lawsuits.

March 28, 2024

Take Thursday’s Headlines Home, Country Roads

Heat Map reports on why rural Americans are resisting electric vehicles, and why it might not matter much for the climate.

March 28, 2024
See all posts