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Bicycling in Philadelphia

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Bicycle facilities: Philadelphia has more than 100 miles of bike lanes (with a total of 300 miles planned) and 40 miles of bike trails. There are more than 1,000 bike racks on city streets.
About the city: Philadelphia (pop. 1.7 million, metro area pop. 5.8 million) is a major industrial center and shipping port.
Public transit: Bicycles are permitted on certain buses and trains with some restrictions
Web site: City of Philadelphia Bicycle Network
Bicycling organizations: Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia advocates and promotes bicycling as a form of transportation. Neighborhood Bike Works organizes community rides and offers programs on city riding and bike repairs for urban bikers, particularly youths.
Cycling map: A bike map of central Philadelphia (1.5 MB PDF) can be downloaded from the city bike page. A cycling map of the greater Philadephia area can be purchased from the Bicycle Coalition or viewed online.
Trails: There are two main bike trails: one along the Schuylkill River to Valley Forge and the other following Wissahickon Creek. West River Drive is reserved for non-motorized recreational activities on weekends.
Bike events: Freedom Valley Bike Ride in mid-June offers loops of 9 to 72 miles.
Points of interest: Liberty Bell Pavillion, Philadelphia Museum of Art, The Franklin Institute Science Museum
Lodging: Philadelphia offers a wide selection of hotels and B&Bs and a hostel
Camping:
Bike shops: Philadelphia has several bike stores
Weather forecast: Philadelphia
Tourism info: Philadelphia Visitors Bureau | Greater Philadelphia Tourism
Airport: Philadelphia International Airport is situated about 10 miles southwest of the city center
Getting to the region: AmTrak and New Jersey Transit offer daily rail service
Map of city: Philadelphia

Rate this city's bikeability

Number of ratings: 3
Average rating: 4.25  

3        

City name: Bicycling in Philadelphia
Number of times biking: Several times
Date last visited: ,
Sections biked: Center city; River Drive; Wissahickon
Favorite sections:
Road rating: Fair
Bike route rating: Very good
Bike lane rating: Very good
Bike path rating: Very good
Rating: 3.5 stars
What I liked: scenic, city mix
What I disliked: streets are pretty ruff in spots
Additional comments:
Submitted by: TSC
from: Phila
Date submitted: June 20, 2005

2          

City name: Bicycling in Philadelphia
Number of times biking: Weekly
Date last visited: Apr, 2005
Sections biked: Center City, Schuykill Trail
Favorite sections:
Road rating: Fair
Bike route rating: Poor
Bike lane rating: Poor
Bike path rating: Very good
Rating: na
What I liked: The schuylkill trail is great and takes you from City northwest for 16 mi. along the river
What I disliked: Watch out for the drivers, they are totally unaware that people actually ride bikes!
Additional comments:
Submitted by: bm
from: philladelphia
Date submitted: April 8, 2005

1        

City name: Bicycling in Philadelphia
Number of times biking: Weekly
Date last visited: Sept, 2003
Sections biked: center, fairmont park, pennypack park
Favorite sections: center city
Road rating: Very good
Bike route rating: Very good
Bike lane rating: Very good
Bike path rating: Very good
Rating: 5 stars
What I liked: you can go from street to trail verry quickly and the trails are pnenominal
What I disliked: nothing
Additional comments: philly is the sh*t
Submitted by: Ryan Hannon
from: Morrisville Pennsylvania
Date submitted: Sept 25, 2003

Rate this city's bikeability