By Emanuella Grinberg
CNN
May 24, 2012
A man rides his bike in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The state ranked as third most bicycle-friendly in the nation.
For the fifth year straight, Washington ranked as the country’s most bicycle-friendly state, thanks to policies designed to create alternatives to driving, according to the League of American Bicyclists.
The advocacy group’s Bicycle Friendly State Program ranks the states each year under a series of criteria, from laws and regulations that govern bicycling to policies for accommodating cyclists and infrastructure funding.
In each of the top five states — Washington, Minnesota, Massachusetts, Colorado and Oregon — the focus of the respective Departments of Transportation is not only on highways but on accommodating pedestrians, cyclists and transportation on ferries and trains, said Matt Wempe, the league’s state and local advocacy coordinator.
Arkansas, considered one of the least safe places for cyclists based on fatalities, was at the bottom of the list. The league’s top recommendation was to adopt a statewide bicycle plan and to establish an advisory committee to oversee its implementation.
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