The Portland Business Alliance has just released their 2007 Downtown Portland Business Census and Survey and the results show a 20% rise in the number of people who commute by bike.
The survey — which included businesses, government entities and non-profit organizations — found that 6% of downtown employees got to work by bike (last year, the same census found that 5% of employees pedaled to work.)
Here’s the breakdown of other modes:
From the graphic above, we see that a whopping 42% of downtown employees drive alone (the same amount that take MAX Bus). Given that the major influencer of transportation choice is the distance from where you live to where you work, I found it interesting that only 50% of downtown employees live within the City of Portland (with 9% living in the City Center).
Here’s the breakdown of where downtown employees live:
This underscores the importance of creating more affordable, bike-friendly housing options in the inner city.