How the built environment impacts newcomer bicycle use: An analysis of the 70 largest US cities

Bicycling, as a mode of active transportation, is known to produce positive health outcomes. To promote these health benefits, many cities are developing strategies to attract new bicycle users. Most cities have focused their efforts on the built environment as a means to increase their levels of bicycle commuter use. Conventional analysis of urban bicycle commuter use does not currently consider the importance of separating migrant, or “newcomer,” use from that of pre-existing resident use. The goal of this paper is to provide additional information on the built environment’s influence on newcomer bicycle use for commuting purposes. This cross-sectional study used data from the 2007-2011 American Community Survey (5-year Estimates) to analyze the bicycle commute use of newcomers in the 70 largest U.S. cities. Relationships between newcomer bicycle commute use and socio-demographic, physical environment, and social environment factors were explored. Newcomers who are male, White (non-Hispanic), highly educated and have never married are most likely to use a bicycle for commuting. Newcomer bicycle commute use appears to have a strong positive association with pre-existing levels of bicycle commute use and a weak association with bicycle infrastructure. Bicycle infrastructure has its strongest influence on newcomer bicycle commute use when pre-existing levels of bicycle commute use are very low. The results of this paper provide an empirical source for the determinants of newcomer bicycle commute use, with hopes to offer policy makers and planners additional information for increasing levels of bicycle commuting.