01366119

Component

In this paper, the authors present results from a cycling study in the region of Waterloo, Ontario Canada. In total, they gathered both sociodemographic and observed travel data from 415 self-selected cyclists from March 2010 until February 2011. In this paper, the authors concentrate on how roadway networks and built environment influence the cyclists’ possible and observed path choices. Data on origins, destinations and actual paths were collected using low-cost GPS units. From the data collected, the authors generate shortest paths based on the x-y distance, shortest path along roadways, and shortest path including roads and bike paths. They compare these results using the concept of “excess travel” or required travel distances beyond the minimum possible distances. They are able to show that excess travel increases with indirect, curvilinear roadway networks and land uses that act as impediments to connectivity. They next compute the excess travel saved by the addition of the trails network. The results suggest that many very high cost paths can be eliminated with the addition of trails. Finally, the authors compare the difference in actual path and shortest path to compute excess travel for utilitarian (non-recreational) trips. They are able to demonstrate land patterns that do not support cyclist produce large penalties in terms of added lengths to cycling trips. Results discussed help to showcase the travel time savings that may be experienced with increased cycling infrastructure and connectivity, as well as prioritize future cycling investment. The authors conclude with key findings and a discussion of future work.

01362476

12-2698

English

14p

2012

Transportation Research Board 91st Annual Meeting

Digital/other

Figures; References; Tables

Cyclists; Empirical methods; Land use; Networks; Route choice; Shortest path algorithms; Travel time; Trip length

Waterloo (Canada)

Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Planning and Forecasting; I72: Traffic and Transport Planning

Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting 2012 Paper #12-2698

TRIS, TRB

Feb 8 2012 5:11PM