Barcelona has long prided itself on being a city of cyclists, but until now the figures have been based on estimates rather than science. That has changed with the publication of the first rigorous study into daily bicycle use, which concludes that 3,280 residents rely on two wheels every day to commute, take children to school or run errands.
The research, carried out by the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology (ICTA-UAB) with the support of the Barcelona Supercomputing Center and the Bicicleta Club de Catalunya (BACC), marks the first attempt to build a traffic model for bicycles in the city. Unlike motor traffic, which is carefully tracked, cycling had until now remained something of a statistical blind spot.
‘It’s only an initial estimate, but what is clear is that there are more bicycles in circulation than we expected,’ said Jordi Honey, one of the lead researchers. The study, unveiled this week at an event in Barcelona, combines data from the city’s 381 cycle counters with the observations of 43 volunteers. The model corrects for bias, particularly in streets with fewer cyclists, to arrive at a more realistic figure.
Two key findings stand out. Firstly, the gender gap: only three out of every ten cyclists are women. Researchers linked this disparity to infrastructure, with female riders underrepresented on streets lacking safe cycle lanes. Secondly, the bicycle is not primarily a leisure tool; weekday traffic is dominated by commuters, while usage drops noticeably at weekends.
These conclusions point to cycling as an essential, everyday form of mobility in Barcelona rather than a recreational pursuit. For Honey, this makes investment in safer, better-connected infrastructure imperative. Without it, the city risks excluding half the population from a mode of transport that has become central to urban life.
The study is still being refined, but it lays the groundwork for Barcelona to make evidence-based decisions on cycle policy. By quantifying bicycle use with unprecedented precision, it strengthens the argument for investment in infrastructure that could close the gender gap and ease pressure on public transport.
👉 Join our WhatsApp broadcast channel to get all of the latest news delivered to you
