How Many Americans Know How to Ride a Bike?

A Five Thirty Eight article reveals the data on the ubiquity, and relative lack thereof in certain populations, of the ability to ride a bike.

1 minute read

April 21, 2015, 1:00 PM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


According to post by Mona Cahlibi, and based on the responses of 1,196 U.S. adults for a YouGov survey, "6 percent of Americans don’t know how to ride a bike."

The results of the survey (broken down in an Excel spreadsheet available for download) are also broken down regionally. So, in the Northeast, 12 percent of Americans don't know how to ride a bike, 3 percent in the Midwest, 5 percent in the South, and 6 percent in the West.

The survey results are also broken down by demographics:

"White Americans are the most likely to know how to ride a bike. Only 4 percent said they don’t know how, compared to 7 percent of Hispanic Americans and 10 percent of black Americans. Married Americans were half as likely as single Americans to not know how to ride a bike (4 percent compared to 8 percent)…"

The post also notes surprises in the amount of young Americans who know how to ride a bike, which reveals a cognitive bias that makes bike riders think that everyone knows how to ride a bike.

Thursday, April 16, 2015 in Five Thirty Eight

"Planetizen federal action tracker" logo superimposed over black and white image of US Capitol dome.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

November 11, 2026 - Zachary Whalen

A road in north eastern Nebraska with power lines on either side, and grassy fields.

Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity

Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.

November 6, 2026 - Grist

People walking in downtown St. Louis, walking past shops.

Move over, LA: St. Louis gears up for Olympics, invests millions in downtown redevelopment

The Missouri city will host the 2028 Olympic soccer group stage and knockout matches.

November 1, 2026 - Smart Cities Dive

Construction in Dallas. An aerial shot of a wooden frame of an apartment building.

Dallas releases zoning code overhaul to officials

The drafted overhaul is over 400 pages long.

November 11 - Dallas Morning News

Canal street, where pedestrians are packed shoulder to shoulder.

NYC renovations for dangerous, ‘mercilessly crammed’ street delayed until 2027

Construction was supposed to begin this fall.

November 11 - Gothamist

A rendering of Midway Rising that shows people mingling in a green space between apartment buildings.

San Diego’s Midway Rising project gets greenlight from city council

The project looks to become the largest affordable housing development in California's history.

November 11 - KPBS

FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.

Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold

The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.