Biking Surge Among Baby Boomers

Since 1995, there has been a large surge in bicycling across the United States. More than a third of the increase in bicycling comes from people between the ages of 60 and 79. The rise in popularity of bicycling among the Generation Y (Millennials), who are less interested in owning or even driving cars, is discussed heavily but it seems we should be paying more attention to the transportation patterns of older generations.

It seems that baby boomers are “quietly transformed what it means to be the kind of person who rides a bicycle.” Older individuals are often looking for alternative forms of transportation, feel more uncomfortable driving, or perhaps are just sick of constant vehicle traffic (especially in this area). Biking provides a solution to all these issues.

Creating safe biking infrastructure isn’t just important to younger individuals anymore. It is important to consider the transportation needs of all generations of people. The White Flint sector is working hard to attract all generations of individuals to the area. Perhaps creating safe and reliable biking infrastructure could be just the thing to attract more baby boomers.

Breakdown of biking rates among ages via Streetsblog