Unfortunately, Texas' most 'Bicycle Friendly' city, Austin, saw it's mode share go down 21%. The Lance Armstrong cycle track didn't seem to help.
What does it all mean? Not much, because this survey that the LAB likes to tout (the American Community Survey) is very unreliable and prone to wild year-to-year fluctuations. These numbers do confirm the trend showing Dallas doubling its mode-share over the last decade, although the 219% figure is only a correction from 2008's number being an outlier showing a drastic decline. Are these numbers great? No, but they are in keeping with benchmark cities devoid of a captive major university, such as Houston, Oklahoma City, Tulsa and San Antonio.
But this we do know: population density always trumps paint application, and propaganda and honesty reside in two different spheres (hint: K-Street in Washington DC is well known as a propaganda source).
Reference post.
2 comments:
Hmm. Ocean Shores Washington has low population density and no college at all, but has high cycling mode share while I was visiting.
That being said, there are definitely a LOT more people riding bikes in North Seattle than there were back in the day, and even in the remote areas, there are more on bikes than there are around DFW. Mostly, they don't ride any better, but there are more.
High mode-share is not about recreational, casual cycling, but a measurement of primary trip method.
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