Official Statistics

Walking and cycling statistics, England: Introduction and main findings (National Travel Survey)

Published 28 August 2024

Applies to England

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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/walking-and-cycling-statistics-england-2023/walking-and-cycling-statistics-england-introduction-and-main-findings-national-travel-survey

About this release

This statistical release presents information on walking and cycling in England in 2023. The release makes use of 2 main data sources, the:

  • National Travel Survey (NTS)
  • Active Lives Survey (ALS)

Statistics are derived from the NTS unless otherwise stated. Local level insights from the Active Lives Survey are published as part of this report. More information on these data sources can be found in the background information section.

Future publication dates will be announced in advance on the Department for Transport’s (DfT) statistical release calendar.

Data sources

There are many data sources covering active travel in England. Each data source differs in the methodology and definitions used. This is why it is important to make sure you’re using the right data source to meet your needs. Despite these differences, the general direction of national trends usually broadly aligns, particularly when considering large changes like those seen during the pandemic. The data sources are not designed to understand changes of individual active travel schemes in local areas and alternative data sources should be used for these purposes.

See more information on which data source to use in the background information section.

Definitions (as defined by National Travel Survey)

Walking

Walking includes all travel on foot. It is also used when respondents ride in non-motorised wheelchairs, prams or pushchairs, as well as when they ride on toy pedal cycles, roller-skates, skateboards, non-motorised scooters, or when they jog. For example, children who accompany their parents on a visit to the shops on toy pedal cycles (where the parents are walking) are coded as having walked there. Walks of less than 50 yards are always excluded.

Cycling

All cycles, including e-cycles, which take place on the public highway (any public road, street or path available to the public by a public right of way).

What is a trip?

A trip is defined as a one-way course of travel with a single main purpose where the mode recorded makes up the greatest part of travel. Outward and return trips are treated as 2 separate trips.

What is a stage?

A trip consists of one or more stages. A new stage is defined when there is a change in the mode of transport or when there is a change of vehicle requiring a separate ticket.

Purpose refers to walking or cycling done for the purpose of leisure or travel (commonly referred to as utility journeys). Walking or cycling for leisure is for the purpose of recreation, health, competition, or training. Walking or cycling for travel is to get from place-to-place, for example, commuting, visiting a friend, or going to the supermarket.

Walking

The latest data shows that people are walking at a similar level to last year. The average number of walking trips per person has increased by 5% since 2019, whilst there has been a decrease in the number of trips for most other modes of transport over the same period.

In 2023, people walked an estimated total of 19 billion stages in England.

The average person in England in 2023:

  • made 263 walking trips and 325 walking stages
  • walked 225 miles
  • spent about 80 minutes per week travelling by walking
  • made 29% of all their trips by walking
  • had an average walking trip length of 0.7 miles
  • covered 4% of their distance travelling by walking

Cycling

The latest data shows that people are cycling at similar level to last year. Whilst cycling trips, stages and miles travelled increased over the pandemic during 2020, the average number of trips and stages have returned to similar levels seen in 2019.

In 2023, people cycled a total of 0.9 billion stages.

The average person in England in 2023:

  • made 15 cycling trips and 16 cycling stages
  • cycled 47 miles
  • spent about 6 minutes per week travelling by cycle
  • made 2% of all their trips by cycling
  • had an average cycling trip length of 3 miles
  • covered 1% of their distance travelling by cycling

Average trips, stages, and miles walked

Chart 1: Average trips, stages, and miles walked per person per year, up to 2023 (NTS0303)

Chart 1 is a line chart showing that on average:

  • 263 trips were walked per person (a 1% decrease from 2022 and a 5% increase from 2019)

  • 325 stages were walked per person (a 2% increase from 2022 and a 2% decrease from 2019)

  • 225 miles were walked per person (a 2% increase from 2022 and a 10% increase from 2019)

Note that comparisons to 2019 are included as a pre-pandemic reference to assess changes in walking behavior over time.

The proportion of walking trips compared to other transport modes has decreased from a peak of 32% in 2020 to 29% in 2023. In contrast, trips made by car or van drivers account for the largest share of all trips at 40%, a proportion that has remained relatively stable throughout the series.

A summary of the average number of walking trips by purpose is given in table NTS0409.

Average trips, stages, and miles cycled

Chart 2: Average trips, stages, and miles cycled per person per year, up to 2023 (NTS0303)

Chart 2 is a line chart showing that on average:

  • 15 trips were cycled per person (similar to 15 trips in 2022 and 16 trips in 2019)

  • 16 stages were cycled per person (similar to 16 stages in 2022 and 17 stages in 2019)

  • 47 miles were cycled per person (in comparison to 57 miles in 2022 and 54 miles in 2019)

Note that comparisons to 2019 are included as a pre-pandemic reference to assess changes in cycling behavior over time.

While the average miles travelled has decreased compared to previous years, this should not be interpreted as a decline in the number of people cycling. The average number of trips and stages cycled per person has remained consistent. This decrease in average miles is attributed to several factors, such as shorter trip lengths and changes in the nature of cycling activities, with greater education and leisure cycling trips. A summary of the average number of cycling trips by purpose is given in table NTS0409.

Total stages cycled

Note that due to cycling being less common than walking at both national and local levels, even small changes in cycling rates can result in large percentage changes.

Chart 3 illustrates that the series can be volatile, partly due to the small number of cyclists in the sample.

Cycling rates can also vary significantly at a local level and can be influenced by differences in cycling infrastructure. For example, areas with more extensive or better-maintained cycling paths may experience higher cycling rates compared to those with limited or poorer infrastructure. Please refer to the active lives survey local-level statistical release and data tables for more detailed insights.

Chart 3: Total stages cycled per year in millions, England, up to 2023 (CW0403)

Chart 3 is a line chart showing that:

  • a total of 925 million stages were cycled in 2023 (similar to last year and represents a 15% increase compared to the start of the series of 804 million stages in 2005)

  • total cycling stages peaked at 1.2 billion stages in 2020

  • total cycling stages have broadly remained between 0.8 and 1.0 billion stages across the series

Walking and cycling to school

During 2020 and 2021, data on travelling to school was impacted by changes in travel behaviours due to the coronavirus pandemic as well as school closures over this period.

Data for 2020 and 2021, as well as changes from previous years, should be interpreted accordingly. More details about the coronavirus restrictions can be found in the timeline of UK coronavirus lockdowns.

All figures in the chart below and table CW0410 represent the child’s usual mode of travel to school as reported by an adult, which differs from the figures in table NTS0613 which are based on trips recorded as part of the NTS travel diary. More information on travel to and from school can be found in the NTS report.

Chart 4: Proportion of primary and secondary school children walking to school in England, up to 2023 (CW0410)

Chart 4 is a line chart showing that in England, in 2023:

  • 49% of primary school aged children walked as their usual means of travel to school as reported by an adult (similar to last year)

  • 37% of secondary school aged children walked as the usual means of travel to school as reported by an adult (similar to last year)

Walking and cycling trips in towns and cities

Short journeys refer to trips of less than 5 miles.

Towns and cities are defined using the official census rural-urban classification of residence and include Urban Conurbations, Urban Towns and Cities, and Rural Towns and Fringes.

Chart 5: Proportion of trips under 5 miles in towns and cities in England, up to 2023 (CW0415)

Chart 5 is a line chart showing that:

  • the average proportion of trips under 5 miles walked or cycled in towns and cities was 43% in 2023 (decreasing from 46% in 2022)

  • the average proportion of trips under 5 miles walked in towns and cities remained broadly stable since the series started in the year 2002 to 2003 ranging between 38% and 41% up to the year 2018 to 2019

  • the proportion of walking and cycling trips under 5 miles in towns and cities increased to 48% in 2020, likely due to a sharper decline in trips by other modes during the COVID-19 pandemic

  • in comparison to other modes of travel, walking and cycling has consistently been the method of travel with the highest proportion of users when making short journeys in towns and cities

  • car and van drivers made up the second largest proportion of trips at 32% and 17% for car and van passengers

Demographic differences in walking and cycling

Chart 6: Average walking trips per person per year, by age and sex, England, up to 2023 (NTS0601)

Chart 6 is a horizontal bar chart showing that:

  • females made more walking trips compared to males across all age groups (except for those aged 70 and over)

  • females of all ages made 13% more walking trips than males of all ages

  • among males, those aged 0 to 16 years old made the most walking trips (an average of 263 trips)

  • among females, those aged 30 to 39 made the most walking trips (an average of 327 trips)

  • 17 to 20 year olds made the fewest walking trips across both sexes (an average 177 walking trips in males and 207 trips in females)

Chart 7: Average cycling trips per person per year, by age and sex, England, up to 2023 (NTS0601)

Chart 7 is a horizontal bar chart showing that:

  • males made more cycling trips compared to females across all age groups

  • males of all ages made over 2 times more cycling trips than females of all ages

  • among males, those aged 17 to 20 and 40 to 49 years old made the most cycling trips (an average of 28 trips)

  • among females, those aged 40 to 49 years old made the most cycling trips (an average of 13 trips)

  • those aged 70 and over made the fewest cycling trips across both sexes (an average 13 cycling trips in males and 3 trips in females)

Factors influencing walking and cycling rates

Whilst differences across demographics can explain some variation in different walking and cycling rates across England, there are other factors that can contribute to these differences.

Bicycle ownership

It should be noted that this data refers to ownership or access to pedal cycles, so excludes ownership of electric cycles. The National Travel Attitudes Survey estimates that around 4% of respondents owned or had regular use of an electric cycle in 2021.

Chart 8: Percentage who own or have access to a pedal cycle, by age group, in England, 2023 (NTS0608)

Chart 8 is a bar chart showing that:

  • 40% of those aged 5 and over had access to or owned a pedal cycle

  • younger age groups (school aged) were more likely to have ownership or access to a pedal cycle compared to older age groups (75% for those aged 5 to 10, 64% for those aged 11 to 16)

  • 25% of those aged 60 and over had access to or owned a pedal cycle, which is lower than any other age bracket

Road safety

The figures for injured casualties are based on adjusting figures reported by the police to take account of changes in the reporting of injury severity by some police forces in recent years. These adjusted figures can reliably be used to compare trends over time across the country. More details can be found in the road safety statistics severity adjustments guidance.

Chart 9: Pedal cyclists and pedestrians killed or seriously injured (adjusted), Great Britain, up to 2023 (RAS9101)

Chart 9 is a line chart showing that the latest provisional figures indicate:

  • pedestrians killed or seriously injured increased by 2% from 2022, but has decreased by 15% since 2014

  • pedal cyclists killed or seriously injured decreased by 4% from 2022, and decreased by 22% since 2014

For more detailed analysis on pedestrian and pedal cyclist casualties, please see the road accident and safety statistical collection. The final figures for 2023 are subject to minor revisions and will be published in September 2024.

About these statistics

Uses and users of these statistics

These statistics are used within DfT to inform the development and monitoring of policy relating to active travel, describing patterns in walking and cycling and how these compare to other modes of transport, contributing to the evaluation of walking and cycling policies, and for ministerial briefing or to answer public enquires.

Outside DfT, statistics derived from the ALS are of interest to other government departments and local authorities to support health improvement, compare local and national level data, and monitor local active travel key performance indicators.

Further guidance on the technical background of this publication can be found in the background information section.

Official statistics

This publication reports on a variety of accredited official statistics and official statistics. The type of statistics presented is detailed in Table 1 below. Related statistics and other sources of data can be found below.

Table 1: Categories of statistics presented in this publication

Name of category of statistics Label Description
National Travel Survey Accredited official statistics These official statistics were independently reviewed by the Office for Statistics Regulation in July 2011. The continued designation was confirmed in September 2018. They comply with the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics and should be labelled ‘accredited official statistics’.
Road Safety Statistics Accredited official statistics These official statistics were independently reviewed by the Office for Statistics Regulation in July 2009. They comply with the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics and should be labelled ‘accredited official statistics’.
Active Lives Survey Official statistics These statistics are official statistics. They comply with the standards of trustworthiness, quality, and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics.

We also publish details of ministers and officials who receive pre-release access to these statistics up to 24 hours before release.

Further information about active travel statistics as well as other sources of data are available, including:

Information on official statistics is available via the UK Statistics Authority website.

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Contact details

Walking and cycling statistics

Email activetravel.stats@dft.gov.uk

Media enquiries 0300 7777 878

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