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| Cycling routes in the United States | |
|---|---|
| Name | United States cycling routes |
| Caption | Map of selected long-distance bicycle routes including the Great River Road, U.S. Bicycle Routes, and regional trails |
| Established | 1970s–present |
| Length | various |
| Location | United States |
Cycling routes in the United States offer a layered network of long-distance corridors, regional greenways, and urban bikeways connecting landmarks, parks, and cities from Maine to Hawaii and Alaska. Routes developed through efforts by agencies such as the Federal Highway Administration, organizations like the Adventure Cycling Association and Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, and state departments of transportation link to national designations including the U.S. Bicycle Route System and multi-state projects such as the East Coast Greenway. These corridors intersect with federal lands like the National Park Service holdings and major waterways such as the Mississippi River and Columbia River.
Early long-distance corridors emerged alongside the Good Roads Movement and touring clubs such as the League of American Wheelmen, while mid-20th-century recreational routes grew from bicycle touring traditions promoted by the Smithsonian Institution and cycling publications. The modern era accelerated with the creation of the National Trails System and advocacy by the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, culminating in the formalization of the U.S. Bicycle Route System in coordination with the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials and the Federal Highway Administration. Landmark projects such as the TransAmerica Bicycle Trail and routes through the Appalachian Mountains and Rocky Mountains illustrate how historical touring, federal land management by the Bureau of Land Management, and state programs converged to produce interconnected route families.
The U.S. Bicycle Route System (USBRS) provides numbered corridors that traverse multiple states, administered by state departments of transportation in partnership with the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials and approved by the Adventure Cycling Association. Signed corridors include USBR 1 along the East Coast Greenway corridor, USBR 50 across the Great Plains, and USBR 95 in the Pacific Northwest. These routes often overlay state bike routes such as California State Bicycle Route 1 and regional alliances like the Mid-Atlantic Bicycle Route Network, linking federal designations with state programs run by agencies such as the California Department of Transportation and the New York State Department of Transportation.
Prominent long-distance rides include the TransAmerica Bicycle Trail used in the Bikecentennial 1976 event, the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route tracing the Continental Divide across Montana and Colorado, the river-following Great River Road adjacent to the Mississippi River, and the coastal Pacific Coast Bicycle Route through California, Oregon, and Washington. Other iconic corridors include the Mason-Dixon Trail-adjacent rides, the Katy Trail State Park rail-trail in Missouri, and the cross-country Northern Tier that connects the Great Lakes with the Pacific Northwest. These routes link recreational riders with trail management by entities such as the National Park Service and state park systems.
Urban networks in cities such as New York City, Portland, Oregon, Chicago, Seattle, and San Francisco include protected bike lanes, greenways, and signed commuter routes developed with municipal departments like the New York City Department of Transportation and the Portland Bureau of Transportation. Initiatives such as the Complete Streets policies and Vision Zero programs—adopted by municipalities including Los Angeles and Boston—integrate cycling corridors with transit hubs like stations of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the Bay Area Rapid Transit. Regional planning agencies such as the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (California) and the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning coordinate bikeway networks with transit and land-use planning.
Design and safety standards derive from national guidance published by the Federal Highway Administration and model codes such as the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices and guidelines from the National Association of City Transportation Officials. Infrastructure elements—protected lanes, buffered bike lanes, and cycle tracks—are implemented by state agencies like the Florida Department of Transportation and local agencies including the Seattle Department of Transportation. Safety programs funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and administered in partnership with advocacy groups like PeopleForBikes promote helmet programs, educational campaigns, and crash data initiatives tied to state traffic safety offices.
Recreational touring and bikepacking routes range from multi-week cross-country itineraries organized by the Adventure Cycling Association to single-day loops in national forests managed by the United States Forest Service. Events and supported tours such as those run by Sierra Club chapters, private outfitters, and nonprofit organizers link riders to campgrounds on Bureau of Land Management lands and to rail-trails administered by state parks like the Missouri Department of Natural Resources. Bikepacking corridors utilize backcountry access managed by agencies such as the National Park Service and the United States Forest Service, and are promoted by media outlets like Bicycling (magazine) and Outside (magazine).
Route planning, advocacy, and funding involve partnerships among federal agencies—the Federal Highway Administration and the National Park Service—state departments of transportation, metropolitan planning organizations such as the Metropolitan Planning Organization network, and nonprofit advocates like the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy and League of American Bicyclists. Funding streams include allocations from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and programs administered through the Transportation Alternatives Program and state transportation improvement programs overseen by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. Advocacy campaigns by organizations including PeopleForBikes, League of American Bicyclists, and the Adventure Cycling Association continue to influence policy, network expansion, and safety standards across municipal, state, and federal jurisdictions.
Category:Cycling in the United States