Bicycling

Research on the Effects of Bicycle Education is Limited but Does Point to Higher Rates of Bicycling and Increased Safety

Nachman, Elizabeth R., MCP
Rodríguez, Daniel A., PhD
2019

Increasing the number of people bicycling is often proposed as a solution for addressing environmental and climate-related challenges. Strategies to support more bicycling have traditionally included building bicycle infrastructure, enforcing traffic laws, and educating people about bicycling. Additionally, many cities across California are pursuing Vision Zero, the goal to eliminate traffic death and serious injury in the next decade. In San Francisco, for example, Vision Zero strategies include creating safe streets, safe people and safe vehicles. It also seeks to include training on “...

Evaluating Alternative Measures of Bicycling Level of Traffic Stress Using Crowdsourced Route Satisfaction Data

Harvey, C
Fang, K
Rodriguez, D
2019

Approaches for evaluating the quality of bicycling have become increasingly important for planning bicycle infrastructure improvements. Mekuria, Furth, and Nixon’s (2012) “Level of Traffic Stress” (LTS) approach, which requires minimal data inputs and produces a simple and intuitive output, has emerged as a widely-used framework for identifying streets that are “low-stress” for cyclists. The LTS framework is based on a hierarchy of characteristics, largely related to traffic speed and roadway layout, that are presumed to cause higher or lower levels of stress. Despite the apparent...

A Systematic Review of Empirical and Simulation Studies Evaluating the Health Impact of Transportation Interventions

Stankov, I
Garcia, LMT
Mascolli, M
Montes, F
Meisel, JD
Gouveia, N
Sarmiento, O
Rodriguez, D
Hammond, R
Caiaffa, WT
Roux, AV Diez
2020
Urban transportation is an important determinant of health and environmental outcomes, and therefore essential to achieving the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals. To better understand the health impacts of transportation initiatives, we conducted a systematic review of longitudinal health evaluations involving: a) bus rapid transit (BRT); b) bicycle lanes; c) Open Streets programs; and d) aerial trams/cable cars. We also synthesized systems-based simulation studies of the health-related consequences of walking, bicycling, aerial tram, bus and BRT use. Two reviewers screened 3302...

Assessing Public Health Benefits of Replacing Freight Trucks with Cargo Cycles in Last Leg Delivery Trips in Urban Centers

Hartle, J
Elrahman, O
Wang, C
Rodriguez, D
Ding, Y
McGahan, M
2022

Increased urbanization, population growth, and demand for time-sensitive deliveries means increased freight movement in cities, which contributes to emissions, noise, and safety concerns. One innovative mode gaining widespread attention for urban deliveries is cargo cycles—bicycles adapted for freight delivery. Despite the recognized potential and possible success of transporting at least 25% of freight via cycle, research remains limited. This research investigates the potential of cargo cycle delivery for last mile freight in Oakland, California, with a focus on the West Oakland...

Bicycle Use in Latin American Cities: Changes Over Time by Socio-Economic PositionBicycle Use in Latin American Cities: Changes Over Time by Socio-Economic Position

Avila-Palencia, I
Gouveia. N
Jáuregui, A
Mascolli, M
Rodriguez, D
Slovic, A
Sarmiento, O
2023

We aimed to examine utilitarian bicycle use among adults from 18 large Latin American cities and its association with socio-economic position (education and income) between 2008 and 2018. Data came from yearly cross-sectional surveys collected by the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF). A total of 77,765 survey respondents with complete data were used to estimate multilevel logistic regression models with city as random intercept and year as random slope. Individuals with high education and high-income levels had lower odds of using a bicycle compared with participants with lower...

Evaluating the Effects of a Classroom-based Bicycle Education Intervention on Bicycle Activity, Self-Efficacy, Personal Safety, Knowledge, and Mode Choice

Nachman, Elizabeth R.
Rodríguez, Daniel A.
2019

This study provides an evaluation of the impacts of classroom-based adult bicycle education on bicycling activity, confidence and competency self-perceptions while bicycling, knowledge of the bicycling rules of the road, and mode choice in a sample of residents of the San Francisco Bay Area in the US. Changes were measured with self-administered surveys completed before and six weeks after the course intervention. Self-reported data were validated using objective data collected using the Ride Report app. We used multivariable regression analyses to examine changes in self-...

A Comparison of Heat Effects on Road Injury Frequency Between Active Travelers and Motorized Transportation Users in Six Tropical and Subtropical Cities in Taiwan

Hsu, CK
Rodriguez, DA
2024
Road traffic injuries (RTIs) pose significant public health threats, particularly for vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and cyclists. While recent studies have revealed adverse impacts of heat exposure on RTI frequency among motorized road users, a research gap persists in understanding these impacts on non-motorized road users, especially in tropical regions where their vulnerability can be heightened due to differential thermal exposure, adaptive capacity, and biological sensitivity. In this study, we compared associations between high temperatures and RTIs across four different...

Planning and Accommodating the Micromobility Revolution and Its Impact on Public Health

Quistberg, Alex
Rodriguez, Daniel
2024

Micromobility has grown immensely over the past decade, encompassing both public shared systems and private ownership, and, as Burford et al. have found, a surge in user injuries and deaths has accompanied the growth. Micromobility refers to the use of small vehicles, such as bicycles and scooters, that are either human powered or electric. These vehicles are ideal for short trips—although electric-powered micromobility has expanded the potential distance range.

Bicycle Detection and Operational Concept at Signalized Intersections Phase 2

Shladover, Steven E.
Kim, ZuWhan
Cao, Meng
Sharafsaleh, Ashkan
Li, Irene
Johnston, Scott
1997

This study reports on a method to accomplish sensor validation and fusion in Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS). The method is based on probabilistic and fuzzy techniques that express a confidence in the sensor data and take into account environmental factors and the state of the system. Sensor data fusion uses the confidence assigned to each sensor reading and integrates them into one reading. Noise and failure are filtered from the data and lead to a safety improvement in ITS.

What Makes the Route More Traveled? Optimizing U.S. Suburban Microtransit for Sustainable Mobility

Pan, Alexandra
Shaheen, Susan
2025

Microtransit services that provide pooled on-demand transportation with dynamic routing have been used in low-density areas since the 1970s, but improvements to routing technology have led to a resurgence of interest in the past decade. Questions remain about the effectiveness of microtransit to serve riders in low-density, car-dependent suburban areas. Better understanding of the factors underlying microtransit ridership can improve usage of these services and shift travelers to more sustainable modes in suburban areas. We compile a database of suburban microtransit programs from 32...