Ann Arbor's Transportation Future: What Bike Infrastructure Rankings Tell Us

written by Greg L. Hughes

‍

Ann Arbor sits at a crossroads. Literally and figuratively. As a mid-sized college town in the Midwest, we've earned recognition as a forward-thinking community committed to sustainability and livability. Yet when it comes to cycling infrastructure, we find ourselves in a familiar position: solid progress with significant room for improvement.

This year's People for Bikes City Ratings offer a revealing snapshot of where Ann Arbor stands in the national conversation about cycling infrastructure.^[1] Ranking in the 80th percentile among 2,901 cities worldwide with a score of 46 out of 100, Ann Arbor has shown measurable improvement, jumping from a score of 40 in 2020.^[1] The city opened its very first two-way protected bikeway in 2019, and multiple new miles of bikeways are being added each year.^[3][4] But the rankings also illuminate what we're missing — and point to a path forward that could transform how we move through our city.

How Cities Are Measured

People for Bikes evaluates cities through six key factors captured in the acronym SPRINT: safe speeds, protected bike lanes, reallocated space for biking and walking, intersection treatments, network connections, and trusted data.^[1][7] Ann Arbor's Network Score significantly outperforms the national average of 30, reflecting our community's commitment to expanding cycling infrastructure.^[1]

The criteria reveal something important about modern urban planning: connectivity trumps individual projects. A city's cycling network is only as strong as its weakest link, and the most beautiful bike lane means little if it doesn't safely connect to where people actually need to go. This insight becomes crucial when considering Ann Arbor's transportation future and the role of ambitious projects like the Treeline.

Learning from Similar Cities

Looking at comparable cities in People for Bikes' rankings shows us what's possible. Among medium-sized university towns similar to Ann Arbor, Davis, California leads with a score of 78.^[7] Davis achieved this through decades of systematic investment in cycling infrastructure that serves both transportation and recreational needs.

Within Michigan, Harbor Springs demonstrates what's possible with dedicated investment in cycling infrastructure. Ranking 3rd nationally with a score of 92 out of 100,^[7] Harbor Springs has built the Little Traverse Wheelway — a 26-mile paved trail system that connects Harbor Springs, Petoskey, and Charlevoix along the shores of Little Traverse Bay. Similarly, Traverse City's TART (Traverse Area Recreation and Transportation) Trail system creates the kind of continuous, connected cycling infrastructure that Ann Arbor aspires to build. These Michigan communities show that comprehensive cycling networks are achievable even in our state's climate and geography.

What sets these leading cities apart isn't just the miles of bike lanes — it's how those lanes connect. They've moved beyond isolated projects to create networks where cycling becomes a practical option for daily trips to work, school, and errands.

What Ann Arbor Is Building

Ann Arbor's current cycling infrastructure reflects steady progress. The city has 90.2 lane-miles of on-street bike lanes, 35.3 miles of shared-use paths, and 1.8 miles of protected bike lanes.^[6] We've seen bike ridership increase while motor vehicle trips have declined slightly.^[3]

But gaps remain. Much of our existing cycling infrastructure operates at street level, competing directly with automotive traffic for space. This creates the tensions we've seen in recent years between different transportation modes.

The challenge isn't just about building more bike lanes — it's about building the right kind of infrastructure that serves everyone's needs without creating conflicts between cars, bikes, and pedestrians.

The Treeline Approach

This is where theTreeline  offers a different solution.^[2] Rather than always competing for space at street level, the Treeline's "away and above" philosophy would create new transportation capacity at busy intersections without requiring trade-offs between different user groups.

The proposed trail stretches from the Wolverine Way segment (the southernmost section currently being constructed by the University of Michigan) through the Neighborhood segment in central Ann Arbor to the Gateway segment in the north (named after the planned Gateway Bridge that will cross one of Ann Arbor’s busiest intersections).^[2] This would transform the historic Allen Creek corridor into a green transportation spine that connects diverse neighborhoods with downtown and the university. At critical points like the busy North Main Street and Depot Street intersection — which sees up to 30,000 vehicles per day^[9] — the Treeline would use elevated infrastructure like the Gateway Bridge to safely cross above traffic conflicts.

The Treeline could anchor this network by providing high-quality north-south connectivity that local streets and neighborhood bikeways could feed into, building on Ann Arbor's existing miles of bike lanes and shared-use paths.^[6]

Why This Matters

At-grade protected bike lanes reduce bike-related intersection injuries by about 75 percent compared to comparable crossings without infrastructure.^[8] While this demonstrates the effectiveness of street-level cycling infrastructure, many potential cyclists remain in the "interested but concerned" category — people who would like to cycle but still worry about conflicts with automotive traffic, even with protected lanes.

This is where grade-separated infrastructure like the Gateway Bridge could make the difference. At busy intersections where even protected bike lanes create anxiety for some cyclists, elevated crossings would reduce intersection-related incidents to nearly zero, as conflicts would be eliminated entirely rather than merely reduced.

Ann Arbor has many advantages for this kind of transformation. Our university community includes residents already predisposed to cycling. Our compact urban core and relatively flat topography provide favorable conditions. Our environmental commitments create policy contexts supportive of transportation alternatives, including the city's goal to reduce vehicle miles traveled by 50%.^[5]

The Path Forward

Ann Arbor's People for Bikes ranking reflects a community in transition.^[1] We've made measurable progress in expanding cycling infrastructure, but we haven't yet achieved the systematic connectivity that characterizes truly bike-friendly cities.

The Treeline represents an opportunity to accelerate this transition by creating backbone infrastructure that could anchor a comprehensive transportation network. Rather than continuing with only incremental improvements, the Treeline offers a vision for transformative investment that could position Ann Arbor among America's cycling leaders.

This requires viewing the Treeline not as an isolated recreational amenity, but as essential transportation infrastructure serving diverse community needs. It means understanding that grade-separated infrastructure, while more expensive initially, can provide long-term benefits in terms of safety, usability, and community acceptance.

The People for Bikes rankings show us where we stand and point toward where we could go. The Treeline offers a path to get there.

The Treeline Conservancy is working with Ann Arbor City Council on the next phase of development for the Gateway segment. Learn more about supporting this transformative infrastructure project at thetreeline.org/support

Sources

1. PeopleForBikes City Ratings - Ann Arbor, Michigan. Retrieved from: https://cityratings.peopleforbikes.org/cities/ann-arbor-mi
2. The Treeline Vision. Retrieved from: https://www.thetreeline.org/vision
3. "A deep dive into Ann Arbor's bike infrastructure." Michigan Daily, January 31, 2024.
4. "The Story Behind a BFC: Ann Arbor, Michigan." League of American Bicyclists, January 26, 2023.
5. "Issues of the Environment: Safety a key issue in growing environmentally-friendly cycling community in Ann Arbor." WEMU-FM, November 15, 2023.
6. City of Ann Arbor Biking Information. Retrieved from: https://www.a2gov.org/engineering/transportation/biking/
7. "2024's Best Places to Bike." PeopleForBikes, June 26, 2024.
8. "Protected Bike Lanes Statistics." PeopleForBikes. Retrieved from: https://www.peopleforbikes.org/statistics/economic-benefits
9. Traffic Volume Map. SEMCOG (Southeast Michigan Council of Governments). Retrieved from: https://maps.semcog.org/TrafficVolume/#/

‍