{"id":263550,"date":"2026-08-11T22:54:07","date_gmt":"2026-08-11T22:54:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/263550\/"},"modified":"2026-08-11T22:54:07","modified_gmt":"2026-08-11T22:54:07","slug":"cycling-advocates-work-to-reverse-decline-in-youth-bike-riding-in-philadelphia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/263550\/","title":{"rendered":"Cycling advocates work to reverse decline in youth bike riding in Philadelphia"},"content":{"rendered":"

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — As the Philadelphia Cycling Classic<\/a> returns to the city, cycling advocates are focusing attention on a different challenge: getting more children on bikes.<\/p>\n

Supporters of youth cycling say the biggest obstacle is not the steep climbs found on Philadelphia’s trails, but reversing a long-term decline in bicycle riding among children.<\/p>\n

“I think it’s a trend that kids are riding their bikes less,” said Ryan Oelkers, outreach director for the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Cycling League, or PICL. “And we definitely want to change that.”<\/p>\n

PICL is one of more than 30 leagues nationwide working to increase youth participation in cycling. In Philadelphia, the organization aims to introduce more children to the sport and provide opportunities to ride competitively and recreationally.<\/p>\n

Studies have identified several factors that may contribute to declining youth cycling participation, including the rise of e-bikes, increased screen time and concerns about traffic conditions.<\/p>\n

According to data from the National Sporting Goods Association, regular youth bicycling participation fell from more than 20 million riders in the 1990s to about 10.9 million in 2023.<\/p>\n

RELATED: 32 teams to compete in 2026 Philadelphia Cycling Classic<\/a><\/p>\n

New details have been released about the Philadelphia Cycling Classic, which is returning this summer after a 10-year hiatus.<\/p>\n

The data indicates that fewer than 5% of children ride bikes frequently. Accessibility remains a significant challenge for many families, advocates say.<\/p>\n

“Bikes are expensive. So for some kids in under-resourced neighborhoods, that’s an afterthought for a parent,” the report noted.<\/p>\n

Oelkers said PICL works to reduce barriers that may prevent children from participating.<\/p>\n

“We want to take all those hurdles away in joining cycling teams, so we get them bikes, we get them helmets, coaching and, because there’s so many great parks in the area, the sport can be accessible.”<\/p>\n

The organization hopes events connected to the Philadelphia Cycling Classic will encourage more young people to try cycling and become involved in local programs.<\/p>\n

“The goal is to leave there inspired thinking I want to ride bikes, join one of our teams… or just grow the sport here in Philadelphia,” Oelkers said.<\/p>\n

He added that organizers hope the event helps build long-term participation in youth cycling.<\/p>\n

6abc is the exclusive broadcast partner for the Philadelphia Cycling Classic. It’s happening Sunday, August 30th. Be sure to watch our live coverage starting at 8:30 a.m.<\/p>\n

Copyright \u00a9 2026 WPVI-TV. All Rights Reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — As the Philadelphia Cycling Classic returns to the city, cycling advocates are focusing attention on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":263551,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[111369,69,71,70],"class_list":["post-263550","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-philadelphia","tag-111369","tag-philadelphia","tag-philadelphia-headlines","tag-philadelphia-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/263550","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=263550"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/263550\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/263551"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=263550"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=263550"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=263550"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}