New census data shows which metro areas have the highest share of the population walking to work. Some of the larger, more dense urban areas do employ above-average counts of walk commuters. But it's mid-size towns, particularly in the Midwest and northeastern U.S., where people are most apt to walk to work.
Many of the top areas for walking are home to colleges and universities.
Larger icons in the map below illustrate metro areas with the highest percentage of workers primarily walking to their jobs last year. Open a full-screen interactive version here.
walk-to-work-large.jpg
The table below lists the 100 metro areas with the highest percentage of commuters primarily walking to work. Percentages shown are lower than the actual total share of those who walk because of the Census Bureau's methodology. Survey respondents are asked to record a single mode of transportation for the longest distance traveled during their trip, so those walking to rail stations count only as public transportation commuters.
| Rank | Metro Area | Walk % | Margin of Error | Workers 16+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ithaca, NY | 15.4 | 2.2 | 48,381 |
| 2 | State College, PA | 11.4 | 1.8 | 74,188 |
| 3 | Flagstaff, AZ | 10.7 | 2.8 | 63,740 |
| 4 | Corvallis, OR | 8.9 | 2.5 | 35,847 |
| 5 | Bloomington, IN | 8 | 1.7 | 89,474 |
| 6 | Champaign-Urbana, IL | 8 | 1.6 | 106,787 |
| 7 | San Angelo, TX | 7.5 | 2.3 | 52,780 |
| 8 | Iowa City, IA | 7.4 | 1.6 | 85,464 |
| 9 | Wichita Falls, TX | 7.3 | 3.2 | 66,628 |
| 10 | Ames, IA | 7.2 | 2.2 | 47,032 |
| 11 | Muncie, IN | 7 | 2 | 46,647 |
| 12 | Burlington-South Burlington, VT | 6.6 | 1.2 | 113,740 |
| 13 | New York-Northern NJ-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA | 6.3 | 0.2 | 8,634,166 |
| 14 | Bellingham, WA | 6.2 | 2.5 | 95,271 |
| 15 | Poughkeepsie-Newburgh-Middletown, NY | 6.2 | 1 | 304,856 |
| 16 | Ann Arbor, MI | 6.2 | 0.9 | 163,753 |
| 17 | Charlottesville, VA | 6.1 | 1.5 | 90,140 |
| 18 | Morgantown, WV | 6 | 1.7 | 57,342 |
| 19 | Missoula, MT | 6 | 2 | 55,106 |
| 20 | Lawrence, KS | 5.8 | 2.4 | 61,087 |
| 21 | Dubuque, IA | 5.6 | 1.9 | 49,264 |
| 22 | Honolulu, HI | 5.4 | 0.6 | 467,029 |
| 23 | Kingston, NY | 5.3 | 1.5 | 82,029 |
| 24 | Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH | 5.3 | 0.2 | 2,303,025 |
| 25 | Manhattan, KS | 5.2 | 1.3 | 64,310 |
| 26 | Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA | 5.1 | 1.2 | 82,205 |
| 27 | Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford, VA | 5.1 | 2 | 71,252 |
| 28 | Madison, WI | 5.1 | 0.8 | 313,379 |
| 29 | Napa, CA | 5 | 1.7 | 63,615 |
| 30 | Lafayette, IN | 5 | 1.1 | 95,196 |
| 31 | Jacksonville, NC | 4.9 | 1.1 | 90,289 |
| 32 | Columbia, MO | 4.9 | 1.1 | 90,335 |
| 33 | Bangor, ME | 4.9 | 1.3 | 70,108 |
| 34 | College Station-Bryan, TX | 4.8 | 1.5 | 102,065 |
| 35 | Gulfport-Biloxi, MS | 4.7 | 1.3 | 110,628 |
| 36 | San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA | 4.7 | 2.3 | 117,027 |
| 37 | Harrisonburg, VA | 4.7 | 1.4 | 58,355 |
| 38 | Colorado Springs, CO | 4.6 | 0.5 | 309,998 |
| 39 | Mankato-North Mankato, MN | 4.6 | 1.2 | 54,425 |
| 40 | Bloomington-Normal, IL | 4.6 | 1.1 | 85,825 |
| 41 | Erie, PA | 4.6 | 1 | 127,712 |
| 42 | Boulder, CO | 4.6 | 0.9 | 155,193 |
| 43 | Madera-Chowchilla, CA | 4.5 | 1.9 | 41,235 |
| 44 | Aguadilla-Isabela-San Sebastián, PR | 4.5 | 1.3 | 72,057 |
| 45 | Fargo, ND-MN | 4.5 | 1.2 | 121,753 |
| 46 | Ocean City, NJ | 4.5 | 2.1 | 42,480 |
| 47 | Trenton-Ewing, NJ | 4.5 | 1 | 172,254 |
| 48 | Fond du Lac, WI | 4.4 | 1.1 | 52,161 |
| 49 | Battle Creek, MI | 4.4 | 1.4 | 52,027 |
| 50 | Grand Forks, ND-MN | 4.4 | 1.2 | 51,952 |
| 51 | Chico, CA | 4.4 | 1.5 | 82,842 |
| 52 | Duluth, MN-WI | 4.4 | 0.8 | 129,087 |
| 53 | Eugene-Springfield, OR | 4.4 | 1.1 | 146,600 |
| 54 | San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | 4.3 | 0.3 | 2,051,756 |
| 55 | Elmira, NY | 4.2 | 1.8 | 39,144 |
| 56 | Cape Girardeau-Jackson, MO-IL | 4.1 | 1.6 | 42,549 |
| 57 | Fayetteville, NC | 4.1 | 1.1 | 159,492 |
| 58 | Utica-Rome, NY | 4.1 | 0.8 | 129,919 |
| 59 | La Crosse, WI-MN | 4.1 | 1.1 | 70,769 |
| 60 | Salem, OR | 4.1 | 1.1 | 154,831 |
| 61 | Athens-Clarke County, GA | 4.1 | 1.4 | 80,780 |
| 62 | Hanford-Corcoran, CA | 4 | 1.3 | 53,207 |
| 63 | Glens Falls, NY | 4 | 1.3 | 57,392 |
| 64 | Steubenville-Weirton, OH-WV | 4 | 1.5 | 51,634 |
| 65 | Provo-Orem, UT | 4 | 0.7 | 223,852 |
| 66 | Kankakee-Bradley, IL | 4 | 2.1 | 46,172 |
| 67 | Syracuse, NY | 4 | 0.6 | 293,841 |
| 68 | Santa Barbara-Santa Maria-Goleta, CA | 4 | 0.8 | 196,607 |
| 69 | Pittsfield, MA | 3.9 | 1.2 | 59,325 |
| 70 | Logan, UT-ID | 3.9 | 1.4 | 57,047 |
| 71 | Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood, TX | 3.8 | 0.9 | 172,436 |
| 72 | Lawton, OK | 3.8 | 1.1 | 58,875 |
| 73 | New Haven-Milford, CT | 3.8 | 0.7 | 405,612 |
| 74 | Lebanon, PA | 3.7 | 1.1 | 62,995 |
| 75 | Columbia, SC | 3.7 | 0.6 | 352,715 |
| 76 | Salinas, CA | 3.7 | 0.6 | 168,252 |
| 77 | Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA | 3.7 | 1.1 | 125,855 |
| 78 | Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | 3.7 | 0.3 | 1,696,668 |
| 79 | Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 3.7 | 0.2 | 2,707,951 |
| 80 | Terre Haute, IN | 3.6 | 1.2 | 74,349 |
| 81 | Ponce, PR | 3.6 | 1.6 | 63,427 |
| 82 | Williamsport, PA | 3.6 | 1 | 53,251 |
| 83 | Lewiston, ID-WA | 3.6 | 1.6 | 27,220 |
| 84 | Portland-South Portland-Biddeford, ME | 3.5 | 0.6 | 263,602 |
| 85 | Norwich-New London, CT | 3.5 | 0.8 | 133,647 |
| 86 | Lansing-East Lansing, MI | 3.5 | 0.6 | 208,217 |
| 87 | San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo, PR | 3.5 | 0.4 | 758,554 |
| 88 | Prescott, AZ | 3.4 | 1.6 | 77,374 |
| 89 | Eau Claire, WI | 3.4 | 1.1 | 82,156 |
| 90 | Las Cruces, NM | 3.4 | 1.1 | 85,518 |
| 91 | Bowling Green, KY | 3.4 | 1.5 | 61,305 |
| 92 | Lancaster, PA | 3.4 | 0.6 | 249,185 |
| 93 | Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA | 3.4 | 0.6 | 254,775 |
| 94 | Wenatchee-East Wenatchee, WA | 3.4 | 1.5 | 50,709 |
| 95 | Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | 3.4 | 0.8 | 226,030 |
| 96 | Gainesville, FL | 3.4 | 1 | 118,127 |
| 97 | Pittsburgh, PA | 3.4 | 0.3 | 1,086,691 |
| 98 | Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | 3.4 | 0.3 | 1,051,828 |
| 99 | Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ | 3.4 | 0.7 | 120,603 |
| 100 | Holland-Grand Haven, MI | 3.3 | 1.1 | 122,291 |
