We're No. 1

Austin wins title of the very best state capital in which to live

Everybody wishes they were living in Austin.

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Everything's coming up Austin lately, and not just for millennials. In a new ranking by personal finance website WalletHub, Texas' capital city was named the absolute very best one to live in, scoring especially high in median household income and local attractions.

The site assigned equal weight to four categories: affordability, economic well-being, quality of education and health, and quality of life. Within those were variable factors such as housing costs, population growth, high school graduation rate, commute time, and friendliness to sports fans.

Austin came out at No. 1 overall, scoring first in economic well-being, third in education and health, fourth in quality of life, and No. 12 in affordability.

That said, we also had the highest median household income (adjusted for cost of living) at $67,938, which is 2.3 times higher than in Hartford, Connecticut, the city with the lowest at $28,977.

Austin also tied for third with highest percentage of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher, and ranked No. 1 for lowest premature death rate. Hooray?

The only negative was our average weekly work hours: a tie for No. 46 out of 50.

Following Austin in the overall list are Raleigh, North Carolina; Madison, Wisconsin; Denver, Colorado; and Lincoln, Nebraska.

At the bottom are Carson City, Nevada (No. 48); Charleston, West Virginia (No. 49); and Trenton, New Jersey (No. 50).

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Texas races to the bottom in new list of best states for cyclists

Photo by Justin Wallace on Unsplash

If you've ridden your bicycle in Austin, you already know how true this is.

In what will come as no surprise to cyclists around Austin, the state of Texas is not a good place for bicycle riding. According to a new report of the "Most Cycling-Friendly States in the U.S.," Texas comes in at No. 47 — meaning that only three other states are worse.

The report, from Philadelphia personal injury law firm KaplunMarx, examines all 50 states based on six metrics: Air quality index, the number of cyclist deaths per one million residents, bike routes per square mile, local government actions supporting cycling, federal funding for cycling projects, and bicycle laws.

Texas musters a mere 31 points out of 100 for its "cycling friendly score."

The most cycling-friendly state in the U.S.: Minnesota, which earned 84 points to claim the title.

According to the report's findings, there have been 15 local government actions per capita in Texas that integrate pedestrians and cyclists in transportation projects. Texas' has a 41 air quality index value, and there are approximately 1.2 bike routes per 1,000 square miles in the state.

On cyclist deaths, Texas does a little better, with three cyclist deaths per one million residents in Texas — about nine percent lower than the national average.

According to KaplunMarx founding partner Ted Kaplun, there is an average of 857 cyclist fatalities in the U.S. every year. He adds that every measure or community effort to improve cyclist-friendliness is beneficial for all Americans.

"It's crucial for all states to continually assess and enhance their cycling provisions, learning from both high-ranking peers and their own experiences," he says.

Top-ranking Minnesota has only one cyclist death per one million state residents. It also has about 27.2 bike routes per 1,000 square miles.

After Minnesota, the remaining top five best states for cyclists are Massachusetts (No. 2), Rhode Island (No. 3), Washington (No. 4), and Iowa (No. 5).

At the bottom of the list are Nevada (No. 48), Arizona (No. 49), and Utah (No. 50) — all of which performed far worse than Texas to be declared the three least cycling-friendly states.

The entire country still has areas for improvement when it comes to creating a safer environment for cyclists, regardless of where each state landed on the list, according to Kaplun.

"With over 53 million Americans riding bicycles regularly, the importance of cycling-friendly infrastructure and safety measures cannot be overstated," said Kaplun in the report. "This isn't just about rankings – it's about enhancing the quality of life, promoting sustainable transportation, and most crucially, saving lives."

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