BIKE: The Four-Letter Word That Can Save Billions

The bike craze has exploded in dozens of cities around the country, but in reality, nearly 9 out of 10 Americans still drive to work, and about 70 percent of car trips are less than two miles long. With the obesity rate at 33.8 percent and rising every year, could biking improve health fitness, reduce air pollution and lower health care costs? A recent study in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives calculated the health care savings in 11 metropolitan areas in the Midwest if half of car trips under 2.5 miles each way were made by bicycle. The good news: mortality would decline by approximately 1,100 deaths per year due to increased exercise and better air quality. The health care savings from increased exercise would yield about $3.8 billion a year. The health care savings of better air quality would be $3.5 billion a year. Combined, that’s over $7 billion a year.