San Francisco bicycle boom follows bike-friendly upgrades (sfgate)

These stats, or subset of them, have been kept since 2006. The article states that approx 3.5% of trips in SF are by bicycle (2012, so presumably a bit more now) with 0.5% of the transportation budget for cycling.

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San Francisco bicycle boom follows bike-friendly upgrades
Michael Cabanatuan
Updated 10:50 pm, Thursday, December 12, 2013

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/articl...ly-5060338.php

It will come as little surprise to anyone who's seen the river of riders flowing along Market Street during commute hours that an annual census shows bicycling continues to boom in San Francisco.

The number of people riding bikes has increased 14 percent since 2011 and 96 percent since 2006. That's the conclusion of the 2013 bicycle count taken by the Municipal Transportation Agency in September and released Thursday.

"We are seeing more and more people riding a bicycle in San Francisco every day," Mayor Ed Lee said in a statement, "and the latest bicycle count data confirms what we are seeing on our streets."

The sharp increase in transportation by bike coincides with a surge in improvements - from parking "corrals" to bike lanes, sometimes with green pavement and protective barriers - around the city. It's all part of an effort to boost the percentage of trips taken by bike to reduce driving, pollution and crowding on Muni.

As part of the transportation agency's plan to get half of San Francisco's travelers to rely on something other than cars to get around, the city is counting on a continuing surge in cycling. A draft version of the bicycling strategy calls for increasing the 2012 estimate of bicycles accounting for 3.5 percent of all trips taken to a 2018 goal of 8 to 10 percent. A separate citywide survey is being conducted to calculate how people take trips around the city.

Commute-hour tally

The bike counts were taken on weekdays between Sept. 10 and 19 during the 4:30-to-6:30 p.m. peak of the evening commute. The MTA used volunteers and automated in-pavement meters to count bicyclists at 51 intersections around the city. Twenty-one of those intersections have been included since the counts began in 2006 and are used as the baseline for comparisons.

The highest counts came at intersections in the downtown core and the Mission District. Market and Valencia streets recorded the highest volume, at 1,365 daily bike trips during the evening commute, followed by Valencia and 17th streets with 1,337, and Fifth and Market streets with 1,267.

Streets experiencing the most growth in riders since the 2011 count were Townsend Street, which saw a 36 percent increase; Second Street, 35 percent; and Polk Street, 34 percent.

According to the report, bicyclists' travel patterns were similar to those of drivers and transit riders. Most people used busy streets or corridors such as Market Street; the Embarcadero; Fell Street; Oak Street; the Wiggle, a popular route between Market Street and Golden Gate Park; Alemany Boulevard; and Valencia Street; as well as Polk Street to travel to the city's northeastern quadrant.

Kristin Smith, a spokeswoman for the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, pointed out that big increases in bike riding were seen in areas where bicycle improvements had been made. They ranged from markings that encourage drivers to share the road, to intersection and signal changes that accommodate cyclists, to new bike lanes, some physically separated from traffic.
Huge increase

At Portola Drive and O'Shaughnessy Boulevard, a new bike lane coincided with an 83 percent increase over 2011. At Page and Stanyan streets, bike-friendly traffic-signal changes were followed by a 78 percent rise. And 24 percent more bike riders passed through the intersection of 17th, Castro and Market streets after a new bike lane opened.

"Almost everywhere bike improvements were made, the counts went up," Smith said. "If you build it, people will ride there."

The coalition, which has become influential in San Francisco politics and transportation planning, advocates for a much more aggressive investment in bike improvements and notes that the city's gains have come despite what it considers minimal investment.
More bikeways

"The city spends just one-half of 1 percent of its transportation budget on bicycle facilities," Smith said. "We're excited to see what would happen if the city makes more substantial investments in more connected bikeways all across the city."

Whether that happens will be a big issue in 2014. Drivers, and sometimes merchants and residents, have objected to bike projects in their neighborhoods, especially those that take away parking or lanes of traffic. Yet city officials say they remain committed to boosting the number of bike riders.

"As bicycling becomes even more commonplace in our city," the mayor said in a statement, "we must meet and support the rising demand for better bikeways."
2-wheel trend

14%

Increase in S.F. cyclists since 2011

96%

Increase in S.F. cyclists since 2006

3.5%

Percentage of all S.F. trips made by cyclists in 2012

8-10%

2018 goal for percentage of all S.F. trips made by cyclists

83%

Increase in cyclists at Portola and O'Shaughnessy after bike-lane installation

78%

Increase in cyclists at Page and Stanyan after bike-friendly traffic-signal changes

On 12/13/2013 11:09 AM, yirgster wrote:
These stats, or subset of them, have been kept since 2006. The article states that approx 3.5% of trips in SF are by bicycle (2012, so presumably a bit more now) with 0.5% of the transportation budget for cycling.

I think that bicycle-friendly transit has played a part. The transit
agencies were forced, kicking and screaming, to accommodate bicycles,
but now they tout how bicycle friendly they are.

I compiled a list:

Bicycle Access on Bay Area Transit Systems

If you're visiting the Bay Area with your bicycle then this information
may be useful. The plethora of different transit agencies, each with
different polices on bicycles, can be maddening. The good news is that
all the transit agencies do allow full size bicycles though usually in
limited numbers.

No more fixed time restrictions on any transit system!

BART: No official limit, and really no one to enforce the unofficial
limits. No rule against tandems.
CalTrain: 24 or 48 bicycle per train limit is enforced. No tandems
MUNI buses: most have front rack for two bicycles. No tandems.
MUNI streetcars, cable cars, historic trollies: No bicycles
SamTrans: front rack for two bicycles. Two bicycles allowed inside. No
tandems.
VTA buses: front rack for two bicycles. Two bicycles allowed inside. No
position on tandems but probably not allowed inside and racks will not
accommodate tandems.
VTA light rail: Six bicycles per train.
AC Transit: front rack for two bicycles. Some buses have undercarriage
storage for two to four more bicycles.
Golden Gate Transit Buses: front racks for 2-3 bicycles. Some buses have
undercarriage storage for two bicycles. Two routes allows two bicycles
in wheelchair area when no wheelchairs are on bus.
Golden Gate Transit Ferries: 15-200 bicycles per boat, depending on
vessel type.
County Connection: front rack for two bicycles.
San Francisco Bay Ferry: Bikes allowed. No detailed rules.
Santa Cruz Metro: front rack for two bicycles. Some routes allow
additional bicycles inside. No tandems.
Monterey-Salinas Tranist: front rack for two bicycles. Two additional
bicycles allowed in wheelchair area if no wheelchairs (driver discretion)
ACE: Up to 20 bicycles per train. No official position on tandems but
probably not allowed.
Amtrak Capital Corridor: Capacity is not stated. 3, 7, or 13 bicycles
per train car depending on the type of car.
Angel Island Ferry from Tiburon: No limit. $1 surcharge (round-trip)
Blue and Gold Ferry Services: No information, but pretty sure that
bicycles are allowed at no extra charge.

Web Sites

MUNI: http://www.sfmta.com/getting-around/bicycling/bikes-muni
BART: http://www.bart.gov/guide/bikes
CalTrain: http://www.caltrain.com/riderinfo/Bicycles.html
SamTrans: http://www.samtrans.com/riderinformation/bikesonsamtrans.html
VTA:
http://www.vta.org/projects-and-programs/planning/bikes-bikes-on-transit
AC
Transit:http://www.actransit.org/rider-info/rider-guides/bikes-on-buses/
Golden Gate Transit: http://goldengatetransit.org/services/bikes.php
Golden Gate Transit Ferries: http://goldengateferry.org/services/bikes.php
County Connection: http://cccta.org/how-to-ride/bikes-on-buses/
San Francisco Bay Ferry:
http://sanfranciscobayferry.com/sf-bay-ferry-rider-info
Santa Cruz Metro: http://www.scmtd.com/en/riders-guide/bikes-and-buses
Monterey-Salinas Tranist:
http://www.mst.org/riders-guide/how-to-ride/transit-tips/
ACE:
http://www.acerail.com/Getting-You-There/FAQ/Example-FAQ-Question-Goes-Here
Amtrak Capital Corridor:
http://www.capitolcorridor.org/on_board/bikes_on_board.php
Angel Island Ferry from Tiburon (private):
http://www.angelislandferry.com/FerryServices/Bicycles.aspx
Blue and Gold Ferry Services:
http://www.blueandgoldfleet.com/ferry-services/

Folding bicycles are always allowed on all transit. The bottom line is
that if you're going to rely on a transit/bicycle commute at peak
commute times then you'd better buy a folding bicycle. Many transit
servics have infrequent service so waiting for the next bus, train, or
boat may not be practical.

If you're going to be traveling on different systems then you'll want to
get a "Clipper Card" which works on MUNI, BART, SamTrans, Golden Gate
Transit, AC Transit, VTA, San Francisco Bay Ferry, and Caltrain.