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Bike Program

The Office of State Programs (OSP) within the Division of Local Assistance (DLA) is responsible for coordinating many bicycle and pedestrian activities for Caltrans. In keeping with the Caltrans Strategic Management Plan 2020-2024, OSP staff strives to fully integrate bicycles into all aspects of the California transportation system and to improve safety and convenience for bicyclists on state and local facilities. To do this, the DLA provides policy, planning, and technical expertise in bicycle transportation in consultation with federal, state, and local transportation agencies, Caltrans headquarters, District staff, legislative staff, bicycle advocates, and the public. We envision connected networks of bikeways that fit well with other transportation modes, increase safe transportation options for California citizens, and lessen the carbon footprint of California transportation. OSP staff helps facilitate May is Bike Month events, as well as manages the employee bikeshare program and assists with Active Transportation Program (ATP)/Active Transportation Resource Center (ATRC) activities for non-infrastructure projects and plans.

Complete Streets Hub

The Office of Complete Streets (OCS) leads complete streets planning and policy. The OCS engages partners, advocates, and communities to improve linkages between land use planning, community values, transportation planning, decision-making, and transportation project delivery to achieve a more sustainable transportation system. “Complete Streets” is a concept that describes designing streets to accommodate all modes of transportation in a safe manner. A complete street accommodates persons of all ages and abilities walking, bicycling, using transit, and driving. Complete streets design elements will vary based on context and goal; however, many complete streets will include elements such as bike lanes and high visibility crosswalks that can be incorporated into traditional roadway infrastructure projects.

Non-Motorized Facility Report

The Active Transportation/Non-Motorized Facilities provides an overview of the California Department of Transportation’s (Caltrans) active transportation initiatives and related funding programs, as required by Streets and Highways Code Section 887.4. Active transportation primarily includes human powered forms of roadway use and active transportation infrastructure consists of pedestrian, bicycle, and transit facilities that vary depending on location and facility type. This report covers the State of California’s leadership on active transportation, active transportation safety and Caltrans commitment to a safe and reliable transportation system for all active transportation roadway users, equity within Active Transportation, active transportation design initiatives, and more.

U.S. Bicycle Route System

The U.S. Bicycle Route System (USBRS) is a national network of designated bicycle routes connecting urban and rural communities through signed roads and trails. The USBRS was established in 1978 by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) with the goal of identifying and establishing preferred routes more suitable for bicycling. These routes create opportunities for people everywhere to bicycle for travel, transportation, and recreation.

Caltrans is the AASHTO-designated lead for the State of California. Caltrans coordinates with Adventure Cycling Association, which provides technical assistance and resources, to support development and establishment of new USBRS routes in California.

Bicycle Friendly State

The League of American Bicyclists is the grassroots movement to create safer roads and stronger communities. The League promotes bicycling through education, advocacy, and promotion. The League of American Bicyclists’ Bicycle Friendly America program (BFA) provides advocates and change makers with a roadmap and hands-on assistance to build places more welcoming to people who bike. The BFA program sets standards of bike-friendliness in categories such as infrastructure and funding, education and encouragement, traffic laws and practices, policies, and planning, and ranks and recognizes states, communities, businesses and universities based on how well they encourage bike-friendliness in each category.

The State of California was recognized as the 4th most Bicycle Friendly State in the Country by the League of American Bicyclists in December 2024. States have an enormous role to play in making biking better for everyone in communities across the United States. States enact legislation that allows communities to lower speed limits and states develop planning documents that guide how communities approach bicycling.

The League of American Bicyclist’s Bicycle Friendly State program looks at and ranks how each state is taking actions that contribute to building a Bicycle Friendly America for everyone, specifically in the following categories: funding, infrastructure, laws, policies, capacity & support, safety, and ridership. The Bicycle Friendly State program is structured around a ranking of all 50 states based upon publicly available data and a survey completed by state Departments of Transportation and/or state bicycle advocacy organizations. This data is used to rank and create a report card for each state. A new ranking is released every two years.

California has ranked 4th out of 50 in the three most recent cycles of the Program: 2019, 2022 and now again in 2024. Highlights from the 2024 Report Card recognizing California’s success in bicycle-friendly actions include adoption of SB 960, the Complete Streets Bill, and strong climate change mitigation goals; California ranks 2/50 for bicycle-friendly laws and policies. The full Report Card for California can be viewed here: https://bikeleague.org/wp-content/uploads/bfareportcards/bfs/2024/california.pdf

Learn more about efforts to build a more Bicycle Friendly America for everyone and access all State’s rankings and report cards here: https://bikeleague.org/bfa/states/state-report-cards/

Caltrans Headquarters was recognized with a Gold-level Bicycle Friendly Business award by the League of American Bicyclists in September 2024. Through the Bicycle Friendly Business program, employers are recognized for their efforts to encourage a more welcoming atmosphere for bicycling employees, customers and the community. Learn more about the efforts to build a more Bicycle Friendly America and view all 2024 recognitions here:

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For more information, please contact:

Stephanie Alward

(916) 591-4909