National: Demographics Of Biking & Walking

This topic looks at what we know about who bikes, walks, and takes transit based on public data. Major data sources include the annual American Community Survey by the Census Bureau and the periodic National Household Travel Survey by the US Department of Transportation. While this data comes with limitations, it provides an insight into the types of people who are more likely to use active transportation. Demographics discussed include gender, age, income, and race/ethnicity.

Data on this page:

• Percent of Bicycling & Walking Trips by Women
• Percent of Bicycling & Walking Commuters Who Are Women
• Percent of Trips by Children and Youth
• Youth Biking and Walking Trips, Time, & Distance
• Percent of Trips by Older Adults
• Low-Income Households Bicycling, Walking, & Using Transit
• Rates of Biking and Walking to Work by Household Income
• Percent of Biking & Walking Trips by People of Color
• Rates of Biking and Walking to Work by Race and Ethnicity

Percent of Bicycling & Walking Trips by Women

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Percent of Bicycling & Walking Commuters Who Are Women

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Percent of Trips by Children and Youth

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Data from the NHTS indicates that youth (people under 16 years old) are walking and biking less than in the past. There were significant drops in the percentage of both walking and biking trips by youth.

Historically, youth have represented a disproportionately high percent of bicycle trips. The 2017 NHTS data shows a significant drop to youth representing only 22.1% of bicycle trips, much more closely in line with their percentage of the US population (21.2% according to the 2010 Census). The youth percentage of walking trips also decreased, but not as steeply from 17.2% of trips in 2009 to 12.4% in 2017.

The decreases seen in the proportion of trips by youth completed by biking or walking are also seen in the number of trips, distances, and minutes of by biking and walking.

Youth Biking and Walking Trips, Time, & Distance

However, data from the National Center for Safe Routes to School (NCSRTS) estimates that walking to school increased between 2007/8 and 2014, while biking to school stayed relatively consistent. The NCSRTS data is based on “720,000 parent surveys collected by nearly 6,500 schools throughout the United States starting in 2007 and extending through 2014. ¹⁶ ” The parent survey “captures the usual travel mode of students and parents’ perceptions about walking and bicycling between home and school. ¹⁷ ”

Percent of Trips by Older Adults

Data from the 2017 NHTS shows a statistically significant increase in the percent of walking trips attributed to people over 65 years of age. The percentage of walking trips by people over 65 years of age rose from 8.8% in 2009 to 13.8% in 2017. ¹⁸ This increase was greater than the increase in the share of the U.S. population that is aged 65 years or older, which increased from 13.1% in the 2010 Census to 14.5% in the 2016 1-year ACS estimate. ¹⁹  

After increasing between 2001 and 2009, the percentage of bicycling trips attributable to people over 65 years of age did not change significantly between 2009 and 2017, staying stable at 6% of all bicycling trips according to the NHTS. ²⁰

Low-Income Households Bicycling, Walking, & Using Transit

According to the 2017 NHTS, the proportion of bicycling and walking trips made by people from households with low incomes (incomes of less than $25,000 per year) is similar or slightly more than the percentage of total population from those households (21.2% according to the 2016 ACS) . Although people from low-income households represented significantly smaller proportion of transit trips in 2017 compared to 2009, they are still over-represented among transit users.

Data from the Census Bureau has suggested that bicycling and walking are much more common as a means of commute to work at lower income levels. The proportion of workers who walk or bike to work is progressively lower across income categories, up to about $100,000 per year, beyond which the prevalence is fairly stable or slightly higher at very high-income levels.

Rates of Biking and Walking to Work by Household Income

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Percent of Biking & Walking Trips by People of Color

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Rates of Biking and Walking to Work by Race and Ethnicity

According to the 2010 Census, about 28% of the United States population are people of color. ²³ Data from NHTS suggests people of color account for a smaller proportion of bicycle trips (about 19%) than their population share would suggest if all races and ethnicities bicycled at the same rate. For walking, people of color make about 26% of trips, which is closer to their population share. This suggests an opportunity to increase biking as a transportation option among people of color.