BICYCLE  COMMUTING FACTS

• More than half of all American s live less than five miles from where they work according to Bicycling magazine.
  
  
• Only 1.67% of Americans commute by bicycle.
  
  
• In Japan, 15% commute by bicycle
  
  
• About 12 bicycles can be parked in the space required for one automobile.
  
  
• Traffic jams in the 29 major cities cost commuters an estimated $24.3 billion each year.
  
  
• There are approximately 139 million automobiles in the United States.
  
  
• The number of bicycles in the U.S. is estimated to be about 103 million.
  
  
• One hundred bicycles can be produced for the same energy and resources it takes to build one medium-sized automobile.
  
  
• The average cost of a new car in the U.S. is $13,532.
  
  
• The average cost of a new bicycle in the U.S. is $385.
  
  
• The average number of barrels of oil consumed daily in the United States is 17 million.
  
  
• Driving consumes 43% of those barrels of oil. · Industrial world cities typically use at least one third of their land for roads and parking lots for motor vehicles. · Commuting by bicycle produces zero pollution.
  
  
• On average, the commute to work accounts for only one out of five auto trips taken by drivers each day.
  
  
• Trips per day by purpose break down this way:
  
  • Home to work = 1.27 trips per day
    
  • Shopping = .98 trips per day
    
  • Other personal business = 1.17 trips per day
    
  • Social and recreational = .99 trips per day
    
    
• Average miles per trip by purpose
  
  • Home to work = 11.0 miles per trip
    
  • Shopping = 5.1 miles per trip
    
  • Oher personal business = 7.4 miles per trip
    
  • Social and recreational = 11.8 miles per trip
    
    
• For a comparison on true cost savings, consider that you can drive your car to the grocery store and spend 35 cents for a bar of soap, adding 7 cents for the gas, or you can ride your bike to the corner convenience store and pay 41 cents, actually saving a penny and getting some exercise at the same time.
  
  
• The number of bicycle commuters doubled between 1983 and 1990, according to the Bicycle Institute of America
  
  
• In China, bicycles outnumber cars 250 to 1.