Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In

Experts long have bemoaned the gender gap in cycling: Three in four bike trips in the United States are made by men. It also has been known for some time, too, that women's heightened concerns for safety help explain the disparity.

New evidence, however, suggests that women might justly fear for their safety when hopping on a bike. A new study measuring passing distances in Hennepin County, Minn., finds that drivers are much more likely to pass female cyclists at an unsafe distance.

Researchers from the University of Minnesota used radar to measure the passing distance on different kinds of streets — those with protected bike lanes, those with no bike infrastructure, and those with painted bike lanes.

In the 2,949 passing events recorded, only about 33 drivers — slightly more than 1 percent — "encroached" on cyclists — meaning that they passed at a distance of fewer than three feet, in violation of Minnesota law. But of those events, 73 percent of the dangerous passing maneuvers involved female cyclists. Statistically, women were about three times more likely to face encroachment by motorists, a result that surprised the research team.

The study "confirms female cyclists’ concerns about safety on the road, and underscores the need for greater investment in safer facilities like protected bike lanes," wrote University of Minnesota's Greg Lindsey in a summary report.

He added that, assuming that the gender-based patterns of encroachment extend into the general population, "women riders face additional risk. Indeed, based on these findings, women cyclists likely experience tens of thousands more instances of encroachment each year."

The report also confirmed that high-quality bike infrastructure improves safety for cyclists. On streets with a bike lane that was separated from traffic by plastic bollards, the average passing distance was 90 inches — more than on streets with no bike lanes or painted lanes. On roads that had painted bike lanes or no bike lanes, the average passing distance was 62 to 63 inches. Of the 33 "encroachments," none happened to a cyclist in a protected bike lane.

These findings also may help explain why the cycling "gender gap" drops in places that have strong, protected bike infrastructure.

"Separation of cyclists from vehicular traffic reduces encroachments and can address the well-founded concerns women have about safety,” the authors said.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Friday Video: The Massachusetts Company That Traded the Trash Truck For a Bike

This small worker-owned cooperative is reimagining how to do recycling, composting, yardwork and more — no diesel required.

August 29, 2025

Friday’s Deadly Headlines

Reducing our reliance on fossil fuels would bring immediate health benefits for hundreds of thousands of people.

August 29, 2025

Talking Headways Podcast: The Menace of Prosperity

Daniel Wortel-London on his new book, "The Menace of Prosperity: New York City and the Struggle for Economic Development, 1875–1981."

August 28, 2025

Thursday’s Headlines Are a Sneak Preview

Want to see what happens when a city makes major transit cuts? Just look at Philadelphia. It's not pretty.

August 28, 2025

What I’ve Learned From Getting Transit Wrong

"Advocacy isn’t about pretending you’ve always been right. It’s about learning, adapting, and bringing those lessons into the fight for better transit and better cities."

August 28, 2025

L.A. Council Committee Approves Step toward Eliminating Parking Requirements

Off-street parking at new developments is not going away. If the city doesn't require parking, developers will still build parking.

August 27, 2025
See all posts