Minneapolis continued to grow its status as a leading bike-commuting city during 2008, but it lost some ground to Portland, Ore., the leader for biking to work among the nation's largest cities.

According to new figures from the Census Bureau, the share of Minneapolitans who said they commuted by bike rose to 4.3 percent last year. That's up from 3.8 percent in 2007 and 2.5 percent in 2006.

Although the rise wasn't unexpected in a year in which gasoline prices flirted with $4 per gallon, it confirmed the city's ranking as the second-leading bike-commuting city among the 50 most populous.

Perennial leader Portland advanced from 3.9 percent in 2007 to 6 percent last year. Although the relatively limited sample size for the survey gives it a relatively large margin of error, Portland and Minneapolis have consistently claimed the top two spots. The next three best cities for bike commuting -- Seattle, Sacramento and San Francisco -- didn't top 2.9 percent. St. Paul had 2.1 percent.

The dominant commuting mode for Minneapolis residents remains driving, either alone (62.7 percent) or in a carpool (7 percent). Another 14.4 percent of commuters took public transit. The share of people walking to work dropped slightly, to 6.1 percent.

Minneapolis continued to expand bike-commuting investments in 2008, according to Shaun Murphy, the city's non-motorized transportation coordinator. The city's new bike-walk ambassadors made presentations on commuting by bike to community groups, and a bike center opened next to the Midtown Greenway bike-walking paths. Bike lanes were added on portions of Lowry Avenue North and 54th Street. And a seven-block path was added along St. Anthony Parkway.

STEVE BRANDT