Minneapolis, Minnesota is the best place in the country to bike, at least according to the annual top 50 bike-friendly cities in America, as chosen by Bicycling magazine. This year’s list pays homage to cities that have shown solid innovation in making cycling better, and also looks at how local government support riding.
Interestingly, this list must be taken fairly seriously, as Miami has become one of the five up-and-comer cities, now ranking 44th on the best cities list; quite an improvement from 2008 when the city was on the “Worst Cities for Cycling” list! Miami now has added bike lanes, sharrows and trails in the works, but the city recently hired a bike-ped coordinator to make it even friendlier. As for Minneapolis, it was chosen as best for its thriving bike community, and the fact that it has 120 miles of on- and off-street bicycle facilities, plus indoor bike parking for commuters.
Here is a look at the Top Five Best Cities:
- Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Portland, Oregon
- Boulder, Colorado
- Seattle, Washington
- Eugene, Oregon
The Top Five “Rising Stars” as cities that are improving:
- New York City
- Albuquerque, New Mexico
- Long Beach, California
- Cleveland, Ohio
- Miami, Florida
And of course for everything good, there has to be the worst places to cycle. These cities include:
- Birmingham, Alabama
- Jacksonville, Florida
- Memphis, Tennessee
For the entire list, as well as top foreign cities, go to: http://www.bicycling.com/topbikefriendlycities/