At Bicycle Colorado, we believe that active transportation—riding your bicycle or walking as a primary way to get where you want to go—is good not only for our own health, but for the health of the environment and the economy. Colorado is high on the list for the percentage of trips taken by bike or by foot. We’re focused on improving that through working with local, regional and the state governments, and by raising awareness of how easy (and safe) it can be to commute with people power.

How much do you know about bicycle commuting in Colorado?

Boulder County?

Denver County?

Larimer County?

Good guess but hats off to the reigning champ … Gunnison County with 10.6 percent  of adults using bikes to commute! This shows that bicycling works in communities of all sizes.

While we love the idea of hovercraft, this is an easy answer: Bicycling is up by 60 percent nationally. In Colorado, miles driven by car has been flat, while bicycling is on the rise. It makes sense to design roads to be safe for people on bikes as well as in cars.

Phillips County on the eastern plains topped these metro-area heavyweights with 1.6 percent of adult commuters using a bicycle. Plus its neighbor, Logan County, also bested them with 1.3 percent. This data backs up recent polling that shows a majority of voters in rural parts of Colorado in support of spending transportation funding on bicycling and walking.

Oregon (2.3 percent) and Montana (1.4 percent) top Colorado’s 1.3 percent statewide average for adult bicycle commuting. They may be in the lead for now, but we are working hard to catch them soon!

So, the next time you’re getting ready for work or to run an errand, why not join the growing number of people getting around on two wheels?

Check on the rate of bicycle commuting in your part of the state with this interactive map from the Census report on bicycling and walking.