BIKE TRANSIT INTEGRATION

John Pucher & Ralph Buehler

IN NORTH AMERICA

Bicycling and Public Transport: Perfect Together?

•Synergies:•Cycling extends catchment areas of transit stops far beyond walking range•Much cheaper than park and ride for cars•Transit complements cycling by overcoming long distances, physical barriers, bad weather

•Rivalries and conflicts:•Limited space on crowded peak hour transit vehicles•Cycling substitutes for public transport over short distances

•Most studies find mutually beneficial overall, but much more research needed

0.7

1.1

1.7 1.7

2.5

3.0

3.83.9

0.40.5

0.4

1.0

1.51.7

0.8

1.3

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

3.5

4.0

4.5

New York City Chicago Washington, D.C.

Toronto San Francisco Vancouver Minneapolis Portland

Perc

ent o

f Wor

kers

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau (2008) and Statistics Canada (2008)

Share of Workers Commuting by Bicycle in US and Canadian Cities and Metropolitan Areas,

2006/2007

CityMSA

11.213.4

21.0

26.7

33.034.4

36.4

54.6

5.64.2

16.5

11.514.5

22.2

13.3

30.2

0.0

10.0

20.0

30.0

40.0

50.0

60.0

Portland Minneapolis Vancouver Chicago San Francisco Toronto Washington, D.C.

New York City

Perc

ent o

f Wor

kers

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau (2008) and Statistics Canada (2008)

Share of Workers Riding Transit in US and Canadian Cities and Metropolitan Areas,

2006/2007

CityMSA

Trend in Share of Workers Commuting by Bicycle in Large US Cities, 2000-2008

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

6.0

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

PortlandMinneapolisSan FranciscoWashington, D.C.ChicagoNew York City

Perc

ent o

f Wor

kers

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau (2003-2009)

Types of Bike-Transit Integration

• Bike parking at rail stations and bus stops• Multi-functional, full service bike stations• Bike racks on buses• Bikes on board vehicles, usually on rail

vehicles, often with special provisions• Bike paths, lanes, and on-street bike routes that

lead to public transit stations and thus facilitate bike’s role as feeder to transit

Main form of bike-transit integration in Europe for decades

Photo: John Pucher

Bike racks and lockers at Metrorail Station in Virginia

Photo: Paul DeMaio

Indoor bike parking in Chicago

Photo : Chicago Transit Authority

Including vertical racks to save space

Photo: Chicago Transit Authority

Electronic bike lockers at North Berkeley BART station

Photo: Bay Area Rapid Transit

smart card used to access lockers

Bike parking at bus stops in Europe

Photo: Peter Berkeley

Photo: City of Muenster

Photo: City of MuensterPhoto: City of Muenster

Types of Bike-Transit Integration

• Bike parking at rail stations and bus stops• Multi-functional, full service bike stations• Bike racks on buses• Bikes on board vehicles, usually on rail

vehicles, often with special provisions• Bike paths, lanes, and on-street bike routes that

lead to public transit stations and thus facilitate bike’s role as feeder to transit

Bike station at Berkeley BART station

Photo: Bay Area Rapid Transit

Bike Station in Millennium Park, Chicago

Just above terminal station of two commuter

rail lines Photo: Chicagoland Bicycling Coalition

New Bike Station in Washington, D.C.

Photo: Ralph Buehler

Bike Station in Muenster, Germany

Photo: Peter Berkeley

Bike Wash at Muenster Bike Station

Photo: Peter Berkeley

Easy bike rentalsat transit stations

“ÖV Fiets” and “Call A Bike” in

Germany and Netherlands

Photo: Peter Berkeley

Photo: German Railways

Photo: Peter Berkeley

Types of Bike-Transit Integration

• Bike parking at rail stations and bus stops• Multi-functional, full service bike stations• Bike racks on buses• Bikes on board vehicles, usually on rail

vehicles, often with special provisions• Bike paths, lanes, and on-street bike routes that

lead to public transit stations and thus facilitate bike’s role as feeder to transit

27%

32%

36%

46%

50%

57%

62% 63%

71%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Perc

ent o

f Bus

ses w

ith B

icyc

le R

acks

(Source: APTA, Public Transportation Factbook 2008, Table 23)

Trend in Percentage of Buses with Exterior Bicycle Racks in the USA, 2001-2008

Over 50,000 buses in the USA now come equipped with bike racks

Photo: Santa Barbara Bicycling Coalition

Types of Bike-Transit Integration

• Bike parking at rail stations and bus stops• Multi-functional, full service bike stations• Bike racks on buses• Bikes on board vehicles, usually on rail

vehicles, often with special provisions• Bike paths, lanes, and on-street bike routes that

lead to public transit stations and thus facilitate bike’s role as feeder to transit

Bike on LRT in NJ and Minneapolis

Photo: Metro TransitPhoto: John Boyle

Bikes on SkyTrain in Vancouver

Photo: TransLink

Bikes on BART in SF Bay Area

Photo: Ralph Buehler

Photo: Ralph Buehler

Bikes permitted on-board except during peak hours, and without special provisions for bike storage such as on CalTrain

Photo: Ralph Buehler

Bike on Suburban Rail in NJ

Photo: Leigh Ann Von Hagen

Photo: John PucherPhoto: Ralph Buehler

Bikes on Caltrain in San Francisco

Photo: San Francisco Bicycling Coalition

Types of Bike-Transit Integration

• Bike parking at rail stations and bus stops• Multi-functional, full service bike stations• Bike racks on buses• Bikes on board vehicles, usually on rail

vehicles, often with special provisions• Bike paths, lanes, and on-street bike routes

that lead to public transit stations and thus facilitate bike’s role as feeder to transit

Bike Parking at

Transit Stops and Stations

Bike Racks on Buses

Bikes on Trains

Bike Routes and Transit

Stops

Overall

San Francisco

Portland

Vancouver

Minneapolis

Chicago

Toronto

Washington, DC

New York City

Growth in Bike-Transit Trips

• Washington Metrorail: 60% growth in bike and ride from 2002 to 2007

• Minneapolis: doubling in bikes on buses from 2007 to 2008

• SF Bay Area: Bike access trips to BART stations rose from 2.5% in 1998 to 3.5% in 2008 (10,920 trips per day)

• More research needed on impacts of bike-transit integration

Conclusions• Vast improvement in bike transit integration

in North America since 2000• Future growth in cycling will require even

further investments in the coming years• Bike and ride is much cheaper than park

and ride and more environmentally friendly

John PucherRutgers University, New Brunswick, NJEmail: pucher@rutgers.eduWebpage: http://www.policy.rutgers.edu/faculty/pucher.html

Ralph BuehlerVirginia Tech, Alexandria, VAEmail: ralphbu@vt.eduWebpage: http://www.nvc.vt.edu/UAP/people/rbuehler.html

For more Details:Pucher, J. and R. Buehler. “Bike-Transit Integration in North America," Journal of Public Transportation, Vol. 12, No. 3, 2009, pp. 79-104. On line at: http://www.nctr.usf.edu/jpt/pdf/JPT12-3Pucher.pdf

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