Search Results (210)

Cycling is widely recognized as a sustainable urban mobility solution, and many municipalities focus on cycling infrastructure expansion to promote improved environmental sustainability. However, the current literature on cycling has predominantly focused on safety and health benefits, while the environmental benefits including GHG mitigation benefits remain less explored. To summarize findings from the current literature that explore the GHG emissions-related benefits (or costs) of cycling infrastructure, we conducted a literature review using five major scientific databases, following the PRISMA guidelines. Out of 824 screened records, 17 studies met the inclusion criteria. Most studies were published in the last decade, reflecting a limited but growing interest in this topic. The current analytical approaches include mode shift analysis, life cycle assessment, and scenario modelling. Among these, mode shift analysis (i.e., assessing the potential benefits related to replacement of car trips with cycling) remains a commonly used method. We found that cycling offers significant operational benefits by reducing GHG emissions, especially in the context of large-scale expansions of cycling infrastructure. Existing research indicates that even when embodied emissions are considered, bicycle is a more sustainable mode of transportation compared to cars or even public transit. However, emissions associated with installation and maintenance of cycling infrastructure may sometimes negate the GHG benefits associated with additional cycling. We discussed gaps in the current literature and directions for future research. Full article

Accurate vehicle counts from traffic videos are fundamental to traffic measurement and to estimating roadway demand for infrastructure planning and maintenance. However, many vision-based traffic datasets and pretrained models under-represent vehicle types that are prevalent in developing countries, such as the keke (globally known as auto-rickshaw/three-wheeler), which can bias traffic composition estimates and downstream workload indicators. This paper presents a keke-aware vehicle detection and counting pipeline that combines fine-tuned YOLO-based detectors with BoT-SORT/ByteTrack tracking and ROI-based counting, together with a newly curated and publicly released traffic-video dataset that includes a dedicated keke class. The detectors are fine-tuned from pretrained weights on a six-class dataset (bicycle, bus, car, motorcycle, truck, keke) and evaluated on held-out roadside test videos with a manual counting baseline. On the validation split (2088 images; 8400 instances), the fine-tuned YOLO11l model achieves $P=0.752$, $R=0.696$, $\mathrm{mAP}@0.5=0.766$, and $\mathrm{mAP}@0.5:0.95=0.578$, with the keke class attaining $\mathrm{mAP}@0.5=0.772$, while YOLO26l achieves slightly higher overall precision ($P=0.766$) and stronger keke recall and $\mathrm{mAP}@0.5:0.95$. In system-level counting, the selected tuned ROI-based variants produce the most reliable results on the Yola Road downward flow, where keke counts remain close to the manual baseline, but performance is strongly direction- and scene-dependent, with substantially larger errors in the Yola upward flow and the more challenging Mubi Road scene. Flow-rate and ESAL-rate analyses further show that class misclassification can severely distort pavement-loading estimates even when total traffic flow appears close to baseline, underscoring the need for localized class ontologies and robust heavy-vehicle discrimination in mixed-traffic ITS deployments. The released dataset and baseline pipeline provide a practical reference for keke-aware traffic monitoring and for infrastructure-relevant traffic measurement in developing-country contexts. Full article

Urban roundabouts present significant design challenges for the integration of micro-mobility, yet comparative evidence regarding user behavior remains limited. As cities transition toward sustainable transport networks, understanding the operational needs of different micromobility modes is essential for urban planning. This study investigates the dynamic strategies of micromobility users through a controlled field experiment at a mini-roundabout in Gravina di Catania, Italy. Twenty experienced riders executed crossings using conventional bicycles and electric scooters. Utilizing drone recordings and open-source tracking, the analysis extracted speed, longitudinal acceleration, and path radius across 80 maneuvers. The findings reveal that behavior is highly dependent on vehicle type and geometric deflection. On highly deflected trajectories, e-scooters selected wider radii and achieved up to 15% higher speeds and accelerations than bicycles, whereas on gentler trajectories, they adopted more conservative, tighter lines with intense braking. Bicycles exhibited smaller, less systematic adjustments. These significant kinematic differences indicate that bicycles and e-scooters possess distinct performance envelopes. Treating them as a single legal or design class obscures stability disparities influencing conflict risk. Ultimately, this research provides empirical insights to guide urban planners in redesigning intersections, emphasizing that tailored infrastructure and targeted speed management are critical steps toward safer, truly sustainable urban mobility. Full article

Global transition toward sustainable micro-mobility is an essential aspect of Saudi Vision 2030; however, high car dependency remains a significant barrier to public health and safety targets. In this context, this study explores the factors determining the adoption of electric bicycles (e-bikes) in Al-Qunfudhah, Saudi Arabia. The present research used a convenience sampling strategy through an online survey conducted via social media and texting, utilizing a designed questionnaire of 10 sections delivered to 171 participants, alongside a 5-point Likert scale. Additionally, the scientific validation and analysis were conducted utilizing internal consistency, validity and scale reliability via statistical analysis. The findings indicated a significant intention–action disparity; while respondents demonstrate a strong psychological intention to adopt e-bikes within 12 months (an average of 3.51), real household ownership was relatively low at 11.1%. In addition, a significant 71.9% of participants use private vehicles for short-distance travel (<5 km), influenced by an average bus stop distance of 21.22 km. The hierarchy of barriers indicates infrastructure and security as the main barrier, particularly the absence of dedicated bike lanes, and concerns regarding traffic safety. In contrast, a perception of physical fitness, and interpersonal interaction behave as significant facilitators. Public health data reveals an average weekly activity of 109.77 min, significantly lower than worldwide recommendations; however, 66.7% of individuals believe e-bikes may address the difference. The statistical evaluation acknowledged the questionnaire’s robustness, with significant Pearson correlation coefficients (p < 0.01) demonstrating internal consistency validity and Cronbach’s alpha values between 0.71 and 0.88 indicating high scale reliability, demonstrating a scientifically stable framework for assessing the measured behavioral determinants. The research recommends the establishment of shaded, dedicated micro-mobility networks and the enforcement of safety regulations to promote a healthy, multi-modal urban ecosystem. Full article

University mobility in medium-sized cities faces increasing challenges arising from traffic congestion, urban sprawl, and the limited availability of sustainable transport options. In this context, the bicycle represents an efficient and environmentally low-impact alternative, provided that safe and connected infrastructure exists to facilitate its adoption. This study assesses the potential for bicycle use in the Andean city of Loja, Ecuador, taking as a case study the university community of the Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja (UTPL). Geographic Information Systems (GIS) tools, origin–destination (OD) matrices, and logistic models were integrated to analyze the relationship between three key variables: terrain slope, minimum travel time, and the percentage of protected cycling infrastructure. The results show that protected cycling infrastructure shows the strongest positive association with the modeled probability of use, while slopes greater than 15% and trips longer than twenty minutes are associated with lower modeled probabilities. The geospatial analysis identified priority corridors where improvements in cycling protection would yield higher modeled modal returns. It is concluded that strengthening cycling connectivity and the continuity of protected routes may inform scenario-based planning to support active university mobility, offering a replicable framework for medium-sized cities with similar topographic conditions. Full article

Rural communities in many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) remain isolated from reliable access to critical sites and social services due to inadequate transport connectivity. Formal planning approaches to improve rural networked transport infrastructure (RNTI) remain limited, underfunded and deprioritized relative to urban systems. Where resources do exist, they largely emphasize roads, despite the fact that nearly one-third of the global rural population lives more than two kilometers from an all-weather road and relies primarily on walking and intermediate modes of transport (IMTs), such as bicycles, motorcycles, and animal-powered vehicles. This review examines planning approaches for RNTI with a focus on non-car-centric, multimodal mobility. It assesses prioritization frameworks, including multi-criteria analysis, that incorporate social, environmental, accessibility, and economic considerations. Long-term outcomes are strengthened by participatory methods, multimodal planning and cross-sectoral integration that align transport investments with health, education, agriculture, and renewable resource goals. Addressing persistent barriers such as funding constraints, data gaps, and maintenance challenges requires improved spatial mapping and travel-time analysis to better identify mobility needs and guide investment decisions. The limited body of formal literature on the topic of RNTI necessitates the inclusion of grey literature and practitioner sources and underscores the call for additional research. Full article

The increasing reliance on motorised traffic has led to significant environmental, health and urban mobility challenges for pedestrians and cyclists. Despite growing awareness of the benefits of active travel, including improved public health, reduced carbon emissions, and enhanced urban liveability, many cities struggle to implement effective interventions that prioritise non-motorised mobility due to inadequate infrastructure, safety concerns and car-oriented policies. It is essential to introduce strategic interventions, such as traffic calming measures, dedicated cycle lanes, pedestrian-friendly infrastructure and policy reforms to encourage sustainable mobility choices. This paper examined the impacts of bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure schemes on sustainability and Low Traffic Neighbourhoods (LTNs) at the Trafford Road corridor in Greater Manchester and Wood Street in Wakefield city centre, respectively. Most of the projected trips from the hypothetical office building will occur on the western and northern leg of the Haden Circus roundabout, with approximately 50% on the inward traffic of the western leg towards the roundabout and approximately 40% going outwards. The bicycle infrastructure scheme in the Trafford Road corridor observed an increase of up to 34% in bicycle traffic flow. On the other hand, the pedestrian infrastructure scheme on Wood Street caused a gradual increase in bicycle traffic on Wood Street from 174 to 356 per hour but had an insignificant influence on the pedestrian flow. Many United Kingdom (UK) councils have proposed traffic calming schemes in the city centre to enhance accessibility for pedestrians and cyclists, improve urban air quality and promote business and economic development. This paper examines how the schemes increase pedestrian and cyclist footfall within the traffic-calming zone while increasing traffic on adjacent roads. Restricting motorised traffic to prioritise cycling and walking improves public health, reduces pollution, enhances road safety, boosts local economies, and creates more liveable urban spaces, all while promoting sustainable and efficient transportation. Full article

In recent years, cycling mobility in urban environments across Spain has grown significantly, driven by sustainability policies and behavioral shifts following the COVID-19 pandemic. However, this growth has been accompanied by an increase in accidents in urban areas, where more than 72.6% of cyclist accidents are concentrated, with large cities being the most affected. This study aims to explore and analyze the factors influencing cycling accidents in Spanish municipalities with populations exceeding 50,000, during the period of 2020–2023. A total of 24 variables were analyzed, encompassing not only innovative cyclist infrastructure network features (line connectivity), but also urban morphology and street infrastructure, weather conditions and mobility (all transportation modes). The methodological approach combines Principal Component Analysis (PCA) with two negative binomial regression models: one addressing all cycling accidents, and another focusing specifically on collisions between cyclists and motor vehicles. PCA shows the complex relations between urban features when comparing cyclist accidents among cities. The main results from the Negative Binomial analysis show that increased bicycle lane length significantly reduces cycling accident risk, while higher intersections with traffic signal density are associated with a greater likelihood of car–bicycle crashes. These findings emphasize the importance of cycling infrastructure provision and intersection design and regulation as key policy levers for improving urban cyclist safety. Future research should seek to corroborate these results through micro-spatial analyses and accident geolocation, assessing their severity and accounting for more detailed data on cycling infrastructure. Finally, the results’ discussion underscores the importance of implementing holistic urban mobility strategies that prioritize cyclist safety. Full article

Micromobility studies sustainable urban mobility. In this area, bicycles have been the most popular vehicle for several years. However, the recent growth of users of alternative mobility vehicles, such as stand-up electric scooters (e-scooters), has raised several questions on how they interact with the infrastructure and other users, as well as whether the existing infrastructure is suitable for these vehicles. One of the variables to be analyzed is riding comfort, which can be measured through the vibrations transmitted to users by the pavement. Thus, this paper presents a methodology to assess the comfort of the micromobility infrastructure based on the vertical accelerations registered by an instrumented e-scooter. This methodology has been applied in ten sections of the cycling infrastructure network of Valencia (Spain). The analysis showed that asphalt presented less vibrations than any other material, followed by concrete and square tiling alike, and finishing with transversely oriented cobblestones. This translates directly to comfort, with asphaltic pavements being more comfortable than any other. The analysis also showed that higher speeds mean higher vibrations. This proves to be a useful tool for infrastructure management, where the administrator can place more uncomfortable pavements to lower the riding speed in desired areas (e.g., schools). Full article

This study analyzes the potential impact of integrating bicycles with the Quito Metro transport system to address connectivity barriers and improve urban mobility. Based on data from surveys carried out on students of the Central University, it was identified that a significant percentage of users face difficulties in accessing metro stations due to the lack of direct connections with other transport systems. In addition, the time savings by complementing access to the metro with bicycles were evaluated, suggesting that stations such as Quitumbe and Morán Valverde could particularly benefit from this strategy. Recommendations include the implementation of cycling infrastructure, awareness campaigns and integrated fare policies to maximise adoption of the system Full article

The increasing demand for active and light mobility (including bicycles, e-bikes and e-scooters) has become a key driver of sustainable urban transport, calling for a renewed approach to urban planning. A central challenge is redesigning infrastructure around users’ needs, inspired by the “15-min city” concept developed by Carlos Moreno. However, the existing literature on user preferences in this domain remains fragmented, both methodologically and thematically, and often lacks integration of user behaviour analysis. This paper presents a structured review of recent international studies on factors influencing route and infrastructure choices in active and light mobility. The findings are organized into an analytical framework based on five macro-criteria: external and infrastructural factors, transport mode, user typology, experimental methodology and infrastructure attributes. The synthesis tables aim to summarize the findings to guide planners, researchers and decision-makers towards more inclusive, adaptable and effective mobility systems, through the development of user-oriented planning tools, attractiveness indexes and strategies for cycling and micromobility networks. Moreover, the review contributes to an ongoing national research initiative and lays the groundwork for developing decision-making tools, attractiveness indexes and route recommendation systems. Full article

The study explores the concept of the X-Minute City, an evolution of the 15-min city paradigm, as an operational tool for sustainable urban regeneration in Europe. Starting from the goal of ensuring daily accessibility to key services within 5–20 min on foot or by bicycle, the research analyses how this proximity model can respond to contemporary environmental, social, and infrastructural challenges. Through a comparative approach between Amsterdam and Milan, chosen for their regulatory and cultural differences, the study combines documentary analysis, urban policy evaluation, and the construction of a grid of multidimensional indicators relating to proximity, sustainable mobility, spatial reuse, and social inclusion. In conceptual terms, the X-Minute City is understood here as a flexible and governance-oriented extension of the 15-min city, in which proximity is treated as an adaptive temporal band (5–20 min) and as an infrastructure of multilevel urban governance rather than a fixed and universal design rule. The findings highlight that in the Netherlands, the model is supported by a coherent and integrated regulatory framework, while in Italy, innovative local experiments and bottom-up participatory practices prevail. The analysis demonstrates that integrating the X-Minute City with multilevel governance tools and inclusive policies can foster more equitable, resilient, and sustainable cities. Finally, the research proposes an adaptable and replicable framework, capable of transforming the X-Minute City from a theoretical vision to an operational infrastructure for 21st-century European urban planning. The limitations of this predominantly qualitative, document-based approach are discussed, together with future directions for integrating spatial accessibility modelling and participatory methods. Full article

Identifying area functions around urban rail transit (URT) stations is crucial for optimizing urban planning and infrastructure allocation. Traditional methods relying on static land-use data fail to capture dynamic human–environment interactions, while emerging mobility datasets suffer from spatial granularity limitations. This study bridges this gap by integrating spatiotemporal patterns of dockless bike sharing (DBS) with Point of Interest (POI) configurations to characterize station functions. Taking Beijing as a case study, we develop a cluster analysis framework that synthesizes DBS density fluctuations, parking distribution shifts between day/night periods, and POI features. Cluster results reveal functionally distinct station groups with statistically significant differences in both DBS usage patterns and POI distributions. Critically, high-density urban cores exhibit concentrated bicycle usage aligned with mixed POI agglomerations, while suburban zones demonstrate commuter-oriented fluctuations with evening residential surges. This alignment between DBS-derived activity signatures and POI-based land-use features provides actionable insights: planners can optimize bicycle parking in residential clusters, calibrate last-mile connections in employment cores, and adapt infrastructure to localized functional transitions—ultimately enhancing URT-integrated sustainable development. Full article

Bridges serve as vital connectors in the transportation network and infrastructure. Given their significance, it is crucial to continuously monitor bridge conditions to ensure the efficient operation of transportation systems. With advancements in sensing technologies, transportation infrastructure assessment has evolved through the integration of structural health monitoring (SHM) methodologies. Traditionally, bridge monitoring has relied on direct sensor instrumentation; however, this method encounters practical obstacles, including traffic disruptions and limited sensor availability. In contrast, indirect bridge health monitoring (iBHM) utilizes data from moving traffic on the bridge itself. This innovative approach eliminates the need for embedded instrumentation, as sensors on vehicles traverse the bridge, capturing the dynamic characteristics of the bridge. In this paper, system identification methods are explored to analyze the acceleration data gathered using a bicycle-mounted sensor traversing the bridge. To explore the feasibility of this micromobility-based approach, bridge responses are measured under varying traversing conditions combined with dynamic rider–bicycle–bridge interaction for comprehensive evaluation. The proposed method involves a hybrid approach combining Wavelet Packet Transform (WPT) with Synchro-extracting Transform (SET), which are employed to analyze the time–frequency characteristics of the acceleration signals of bike-based iBHM. The results indicate that the combination of WPT-SET demonstrates superior robustness and accuracy in isolating dominant nonstationary frequencies. The performance of the proposed method is compared with another prominent signal processing algorithm known as Time-Varying Filtering Empirical Mode Decomposition (TVF-EMD). Ultimately, this study underscores the potential of bicycles as low-cost, mobile sensing platforms for iBHM that are otherwise inaccessible to motorized vehicles. Full article

Given the huge contribution of the transportation sector to CO₂ emissions in metropolitan areas, urgent countermeasures are needed to achieve carbon neutrality. In this study of 66 administrative units (cities, counties, and districts) in the Seoul metropolitan area, we applied cluster analysis and a hierarchical regression model to analyze the impact of the 7D factors of Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) on CO₂ emissions from road transportation. The effects of TOD factors were found to vary in diverse contexts. A higher concentration of employment intensified regional travel demand, thereby increasing emissions—a phenomenon referred to as the Paradox of Concentration. In contrast, the expansion of urban rail and bicycle infrastructure facilitated modal shift toward sustainable transport but simultaneously stimulated commercial and logistics activities, leading to elevated overall emissions. Thus, a ‘two-faced infrastructure’ pattern is evident in the Seoul metropolitan area. Conversely, strengthened local self-containment by destination accessibility promoted short-distance travel, curbing emissions. These outcomes empirically exhibit that the low-carbon effect of TOD is contingent, implying that urban structure and policy context are key factors in determining emission pathways. The impacts of the TOD 7D factors are discussed in terms of emission effects, and differentiated policy directions reflecting inter-city heterogeneity are suggested. In particular, the results of our analysis emphasize the need for comprehensive TOD strategies that combine transportation infrastructure, demand management, local self-containment, and zero-emission logistics systems, beyond simple compact development strategies. The policy implications described here are applicable in other countries experiencing rapid urbanization. Full article