Newcastle suburbs where the most people cycle to work
Merewether has the highest share, at 2.1% of residents. Mayfield and New Lambton follow.
This page ranks Newcastle suburbs by the share of employed residents who travelled to work by bicycle on Census night 2021. Only suburbs with at least 2,000 residents are ranked.
The share is cyclists divided by everyone who travelled to work by any method, including those who worked from home — the ten categories the ABS publishes. It is NOT a share of all residents, which would put children and retirees in the denominator and roughly halve every figure. Percentile ranks are computed within Newcastle's pool, so the list reflects concentration relative to other metro suburbs. THIS MEASURES WHAT PEOPLE DID, NOT HOW RIDABLE A SUBURB IS. Flat ground and a short trip to work will carry a suburb up this list without a metre of separated cycleway, and a hilly suburb with excellent paths can sit near the bottom. Census night was a single day in August, so weather and shift patterns are in the number too. Descriptive information about how people commuted, not a recommendation or a safety rating.
Newcastle suburbs where the most people cycle to work
Ranked by the share of employed residents who travelled to work by bicycle on Census night 2021, among suburbs with at least 2,000 residents. This is what people DID, not how ridable a suburb is — a flat inner suburb with short trips can lead the list without much separated cycleway, and a hilly one with good paths can sit low on it.
Merewether
NSW 2291 · 11,788 residents2.1% of commuters · 117 riders
Mayfield
NSW 2304 · 9,760 residents1.3% of commuters · 54 riders
New Lambton
NSW 2305 · 10,651 residents1.3% of commuters · 57 riders
Ranked from 3 qualifying suburbs.
100% share of employed residents who travelled to work by this method on Census night 2021 — that count divided by everyone who travelled to work by any method, work from home included, which is the universe the ABS publishes. It is NOT a share of all residents: that would put children and retirees in the denominator and roughly halve every figure. Percentile-ranked within Newcastle's candidate pool, and only suburbs with at least 2,000 residents qualify. This records what people DID on one day, not how ridable or well-served a suburb is — flat ground and a short trip will lift a suburb here without any dedicated infrastructure. Descriptive ABS Census data, not a recommendation. See how we calculate for the full methodology.
Common questions about this ranking
What are the newcastle suburbs where the most people cycle to work?
Merewether has the highest share, at 2.1% of residents. Mayfield and New Lambton follow.
How is this ranking put together?
Each Newcastle suburb is ranked by the share of its employed residents who travelled to work by bicycle on Census night 2021. The denominator is everyone who travelled to work by any method, including those who worked from home — the ten categories the ABS publishes — not the suburb's whole population. Only suburbs with at least 2,000 residents are included, and percentile ranks are computed within Newcastle's pool.
Does a high ranking mean a suburb is good for cycling?
No, and the distinction matters. This measures what people DID, not how ridable a place is. Flat ground and a short trip to work will carry a suburb up this list without a metre of separated cycleway, and a hilly suburb with excellent paths can sit near the bottom. For infrastructure, each property page shows the distance to the nearest separated path and the nearest on-road bike lane — a different question with a different answer.
Where does the data come from?
The Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census 'method of travel to work' question — the same source as the Commute to Work breakdown on each suburb page. Nothing is estimated or inferred about any individual.
Why does one night in August decide this?
Because that is what the Census asks: how you travelled to work on that specific day, 10 August 2021. Weather, shift patterns and school terms are all inside the figure, and 2021 in particular caught pandemic-era working patterns in several cities. It is a good relative signal between suburbs measured the same way on the same day, and a weak absolute one.
Same list in other cities
- Sydney suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Melbourne suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Brisbane suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Perth suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Adelaide suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Hobart suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Darwin suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Canberra suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Central Coast suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Sunshine Coast suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Gold Coast suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Wollongong suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Geelong suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Townsville suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Toowoomba suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Busselton suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Ballarat suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Cairns suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Albany suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Ballina suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Geraldton suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Warragul suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Bundaberg suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Launceston suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Bendigo suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Rockhampton suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Mackay suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Albury – Wodonga suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Camden Haven suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Burnie suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Wagga Wagga suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Coffs Harbour suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Alice Springs suburbs where the most people cycle to work
- Mount Isa suburbs where the most people cycle to work
Related
Rankings last computed 28 September 2026. Recomputed after each ACARA schools data refresh.
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