On the Right Track: The 10 Most Improved Cities In the U.S. for Transit, Walking, and Biking

CityNerd15 minutes read

The text explores efforts to reduce car dependency in U.S. cities, highlighting 10 cities making positive changes in transit, walking, and biking, using Census Data to track commuting behavior over a decade. Seattle emerges as the top city for transformation, showcasing significant increases in transit, walking, and biking attributed to investments in infrastructure and urbanist initiatives.

Insights

  • Analysis of commuting behaviors in U.S. cities over a decade reveals positive shifts in transit, walking, and biking modes, with cities like New York City and Seattle showing significant improvements attributed to infrastructure investments and community advocacy.
  • Seattle emerges as a standout city for urbanist initiatives, leading the transformation in reducing car dependency through investments in transit infrastructure and grassroots advocacy, showcasing a strong commitment to sustainable transportation modes.

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Recent questions

  • Which city showed the highest increase in transit mode share?

    Seattle

  • What city experienced a substantial increase in transit mode share due to Bart line extensions?

    Oakland

  • Which city saw improvements in transit, biking, and walking due to population growth and residential infill?

    Chicago

  • What city experienced a 2.6 percentage point increase in transit use possibly due to population growth and improved signal systems?

    Jersey City

  • Which city demonstrated a 1.6 percentage point increase in transit mode share mainly due to expansions in the light rail system?

    Salt Lake City

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Summary

00:00

"10 U.S. Cities Reducing Car Dependency"

  • The text discusses the struggle to reduce car dependency in U.S. cities, highlighting 10 cities making positive changes.
  • The focus is on cities improving in transit, walking, and biking, with a mention of dishonorable mentions for poor performance.
  • The analysis uses Census Data from the American Community Survey to track changes in commuting behaviors over a 10-year span.
  • Only cities with populations over 200,000 are considered, totaling 122 cities for evaluation.
  • New York City is noted for a 1.2 percentage point increase in combined transit, walk, and bike mode share due to various infrastructure improvements.
  • Salt Lake City saw a 1.6 percentage point increase in transit mode share, mainly attributed to expansions in the light rail system.
  • Boston experienced modest improvements across the board, with a notable increase in bike mode share, possibly linked to the introduction of Blue Bikes.
  • Portland, Oregon, showed small gains in transit, walking, and biking, credited to extensions in the light rail network and strong planning frameworks.
  • Jersey City saw a 2.6 percentage point increase in transit use, possibly due to population growth and improved signal systems.
  • Fremont, California, demonstrated a 2.8 percentage point increase in transit mode share, largely due to Bart network extensions and potential land use strategies.
  • Chicago displayed positive changes in transit, biking, and walking, with population growth and residential infill contributing to the shift in travel behaviors.
  • San Francisco showed improvements across all modes of transportation, with significant multimodal enhancements on key streets like Market and Embarcadero.
  • Oakland experienced a substantial 7-point increase in transit mode share, potentially influenced by Bart line extensions and changing demographics.
  • Seattle, Washington, emerged as the top city for transformation, with notable increases in transit, walking, and biking, attributed to investments in transit infrastructure and grassroots advocacy for urbanist initiatives.

16:29

Seattle excels in urbanism and content creation.

  • Seattle stands out in urbanism, surpassing other major U.S cities in its dedication to the topic, with a significant presence on the list of top cities. The support from patrons enables the channel creator to focus on content creation, avoiding the need to seek alternative employment.
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