The bikes in New York are rolling, especially in rapidly gentrifying brownstone Brooklyn, according to data from the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

The central Brooklyn neighborhoods of Bedford-Stuyvesant and Crown Heights saw an increase of 133% in biking between 2007 and 2012, according to the Health Department's Community Health Survey.

In 2012, 20% of residents of Bed-Stuy and Crown Heights said they'd ridden a bike in past month, up from 9% five years before. Brooklyn's Sunset Park and Flatbush also reported doubling their pedaling populations.

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The increase reflects changing demographics. An influx of young professionals keen on healthy living pushed rents up in Bed-Stuy last year by 15.6%. The influx of bicyclists has corresponded with an improvement in the obesity rates of Bed-Stuy and Crown heights, which dropped 14% between 2007 and 2012, while the citywide rate rose 10%.

CitiBike and city-financed bike lanes across the boroughs have made it easier to bicycle in New York.

"The city has doubled down on making biking a safe option," said Caroline Samponaro, senior director of campaigns and organizing at Transportation Alternatives.

The city has added more than 250 miles of bike lanes since 2006, and plans to add 50 miles more per year under PlaNYC.

Not all parts of the city are embracing the two-wheeled life. The northwest Bronx neighborhoods of Kingsbridge and Riverdale showed a 68% decrease in riders, the largest drop in the city. The South Bronx saw a 41% decrease, with only 9% of its 2012 population reporting bike use.

Still, residents of the Rockaways reported the highest portion of bikers, with 22% in 2012. Brooklyn's Downtown, Brooklyn Heights and Park Slope had the highest portion in 2007, with 21%.

Overall, 14% of New Yorkers reported having ridden a bicycle at least once in the past year, up from 12% in 2007. The Health Department surveyed around 8,500 adults via landline and cellphone across the five boroughs.

Key:

Lightest to darkest:

-67.8% to -27.6%

-27.6% to 12.5%12.5% to 52.7%52.7% to 92.8%92.8% to 133%