This article is generously contributed by Timothy F. Welch, Urban Planning Programme Director and Co-Director: Future Cities Research Hub at The University of Auckland. We recommend checking out Tim’s work.
Lately, it seems like every month brings another transport record, and May is no exception. Auckland Transport’s latest cycle counts, drawn from 26 official counters, show that cycle movements have, for the very first time, climbed above their pre-COVID peak.
Riders made 351,894 trips in May, a 14.4 per cent jump on May 2025 and the busiest May Auckland has ever recorded. It edges past the old high of 337,002, set back in May 2019, the last May before the pandemic reshaped how the city moved. After six years, Aucklanders have not just recovered that benchmark. They have beaten it, by a clear 4.4 per cent.
This is a milestone worth reflecting on. For most of the past half-decade, the story of cycling in Auckland has been one of slow, hard-won recovery, with the 2019 line hanging there as a mark nobody could quite reach. Now, we’ve finally reached it and then sailed past. It’s also a tribute to the people who have spent years making the case for active transport, often against the grain. Every counter that ticks over is, in its own small way, a vindication of that effort.
The reasons behind the surge will be familiar. As the cost of driving climbs, more Aucklanders are reaching for the bike to get to work, drop the kids at school, or run to the shops. And they are riding because, even though we don’t have enough of it, the safe cycling infrastructure we fought year-after-year for, is doing its job. Where the network is safe and connected, riders show up.
There’s still plenty of road to cover (with cycleways) in getting more people on bikes. Too many suburbs are waiting on safe, connected routes, and on the funding to join them up. But a record is a record, and this one says a lot about what matters most. Give Aucklanders somewhere good to ride, and they will ride. May proved it.
The monthly counts, along with detailed charts and analysis, are at cycleway.tfwelch.com for anyone who likes to watch these trends.
