With bikeshare launching in Philadelphia next year, Mayor Nutter is taking significant steps toward boosting cycling throughout the city. NewsWorks reported that the mayor recently signed an executive order to create the Philadelphia Bicycle Advocacy Board, which will advise him on implementing smart bike policy. This would include “[fostering] volunteer efforts that promote cycling and maintain cycling trails; encourage private sector support of cycling, especially among Philadelphia employers; and promote national and international races in Philadelphia to attract the most elite cyclists to compete in the city.”

Despite joining the bikeshare game pretty late, Philly routinely ranks as one of the country’s most bike-friendly cities. AN recently reported that out of 70 large cities in America, Philadelphia has the 10th highest percentage of residents that commute by bike. Right behind Philadelphia is another Pennsylvania city, Pittsburgh, which is experiencing nothing short of a surge in bike commuting. Using Census Bureau data, the League of American Bicyclists found that bike commuting in the Steel City grew over 400 percent between 2000 and 2013.

Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto wants to build on this, and has made increasing bicycle infrastructure one of his major priorities. “We got into the game late,” he recently told Streetsblog, “we did our first three [protected bike lanes] in six months, though. And we’re looking to do the first five miles in two years.” These new lanes, he added, will become part of a “highway system for bikes.” With this new infrastructure, and the city’s impending launch of a bikeshare program, Peduto said Pittsburgh will “leapfrog” other cities when it comes to bicycling and livability. “We’re not going to be able to settle at just being able to play catchup, we want to catch up and then go ahead,” he said. Game on.