E-Scooters appear on bike infrastructure: users and usage, conflicts and coexistence with cycling

E-scooters are a rather new mode of transport. Nevertheless, in recent years lots of studies have been published. Replaced modes and consequential environmental impacts as well as specific injury pattern are important topics. Regarding shape, speed and usage, e-scooters are most similar to bikes. As a consequence, by law e-scooters use the same road space or infrastructure than bikes do. Concurrently, in recent years we experience a boom of cycling in cities and a significant expansion of the bike infrastructure. Requirements and frequency of usage on the bike infrastructure are growing in cities caused by increasingly diverse cyclists. At the same time, the bike infrastructure is subject new requirements and additional pressure due to the implementation of e-scooters. In Germany, allowing e-scooters on bike infrastructure can be seen as a paradigm shift since for the first time a motorized vehicle is allowed to use the infrastructure. On this background, interrelation between e-scooters and active mobility (walking and cycling) are very important for the future use of the infrastructure and the ongoing transformation of urban mobility. Hence, we use a multi-method approach to investigate these potential conflicts and draw conclusions for regulation as well as improvement in the system

Indirect CO2 emissions of electric vehicles: Insights from real-world vehicle use

Greenhouse gas emissions, in particular CO2 emissions, are a major environmental problem caused mainly by the transportation and the energy sectors. Electric vehicles have been proposed as a solution for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions in road transport. At the same time their potential emission reduction depends on the emissions from the generation of electricity used to charge the vehicles. This study analyzes indirect emissions of electric vehicles to examine optimization potential using real-world data. The results of the study suggest that charging during the daytime is associated with the usage of more electricity from renewable energy sources than charging in typical non-work hours. However, due to the highly violate character of renewable energy sources the differences are rather small. Also, CO2 emissions per kilometer driven depend on driving patterns influencing the energy demand of the vehicles. Accordingly, optimization potential using renewable energy-oriented time course of charging is found to be rather small with an average greenhouse gas emission reduction of 4%. Thus to achieve the potential of electric vehicles to solve environmental issues requires the optimization of driving and charging patterns as well as measures for reducing the carbon intensity in the electricity grid

Assessing cyclists’ routing preferences by analyzing extensive user setting data from a bike-routing engine

Introduction Many municipalities aim to support the uptake of cycling as an environmentally friendly and healthy mode of transport. It is therefore crucial to meet the demand of cyclists when adapting road infrastructure. Previous studies researching cyclists’ route choice behavior deliver valuable insights but are constrained by laboratory conditions, limitations in the number of observations, or the observation period or relay on specific use cases. Methods The present study analyzes a dataset of over 450,000 observations of cyclists’ routing settings for the navigation of individual trips in Berlin, Germany. It therefore analyzes query data recorded in the bike-routing engine BBBike and clusters the many different user settings with regard to preferred route characteristics. Results and Conclusion Results condense the large number of routing settings into characteristic preference clusters. Compared with earlier findings, the big data approach highlights the significance of short routes, side streets and the importance of high-quality surfaces for routing choices, while cycling on dedicated facilities seems a little less important. Consequentially, providing separated cycle facilities along main roads – often the main focal point of cycle plans – should be put into the context of an integrated strategy which fulfills distinct preferences to achieve greater success. It is therefore particularly important to provide a cycle network in calm residential streets as well as catering for short, direct cycle routes

Methoden der Stakeholderbeteiligung in der Mobilitäts- und Quartiersplanung

Dieses Fact Sheet wurde im Vorhaben „Verkehrliche und stadtplanerische Maßnahmen zur Neuverteilung und Umwidmung von Verkehrsflächen des motorisierten Verkehrs zugunsten aktiver Mobilität und einer nachhaltigen urbanen Siedlungsstruktur mit hoher Lebensqualität“ (FKZ 3719 15 1050) erarbeitet. Das Vorhaben wird im Rahmen des Ressortforschungsplanes des Bundesministeriums für Umwelt, Naturschutz und nukleare Sicherheit gefördert und wurde im Auftrag des Umweltbundesamtes vergeben. Das Fact Sheet behandelt unterschiedliche Methoden der Stakeholderbeteiligung und Partizipationsverfahren

Rethinking Public Space - Lesson Learnt From European Cities

Decades of car-oriented planning have shaped most European cities significantly. In recent years, more and more local projects follow a new paradigm in the distributon of public realm in urban centers. Against the background of sustainable urban development, mobility projects aiming to redesign and redistribute public space in favor of active forms of mobility and urban livability are changing planning policies on a local level. Especially due to changes and restrictions caused by the covid-19 pandemic, the quality of public space is of particular importance for local recreation. Before and during the planning and implementation process, in most of these projects similar concerns and discussions of the involved stakeholders regarding the effects of the changes planned are experienced. In this contribution, we examine eight European case studies that aim to design more livable cities and promote active mobility. We evaluate these projects with respect to the planning and implementation process and involved stakeholders. Furthermore, various quantitative indicators are used to study the effects on mobility behavior and transport, livability, local economies and neighboring areas. In addition, we evaluate whether the projects are in line with sustainable urban development goals and embedded in local or regional strategies. For this we develop an evaluation scheme and collect diverse data for each case study. We conclude that most projects require a long-term planning process and considerable communication effort alongside participation tools for citizens and stakeholders in order to be successful. When reducing the area consumed by motorized transport contrasting views are observed. After controversial implementation processes, often stakeholders value the changes rather positive. We present fact sheets for each case study and draw planning advice regarding user acceptance, learning effects and argumentation strategies. In addition, we present observed negative effects and potential legal disputes

Pontevedra: lange Tradition der „Fußgängerisierung“ der Innenstadt

In Pontevedra in Galizien, im Nordwesten Spaniens gelegen, wurden seit 1999 zahlreiche Maßnahmen umgesetzt, um dem Fußverkehr oberste Priorität gegenüber anderen Verkehrsmitteln einzuräumen und die Qualität des städtischen Lebensraumes zu erhöhen. Die bekannteste Maßnahme ist der Ausschluss des motorisierten Individualverkehrs zunächst aus der historischen Altstadt und in der Folge auch aus einem Großteil des gesamten Stadtzentrums. Begleitet wurde diese Maßnahme von der Entfernung aller Straßenparkplätze bzw. der Verlagerung dieser in den Untergrund und der Schaffung von zusätzlichen Parkplätzen am Rande des Stadtzentrums. Auch die Festlegung einer stadtweiten Geschwindigkeitsbegrenzung von 30 km/h und das Ersetzen von Kreuzungen mit Lichtsignalanlagen durch Kreisverkehre leisten einen Beitrag zur Priorisierung des Fußverkehrs gegenüber dem motorisierten Individualverkehr. Zusätzlich geben Stadtkarten im Stil eines U-Bahn-Netzplans Auskunft über die Entfernungen in Gehminuten und Metern zwischen den wichtigsten Punkten der Innenstadt. Mit diesem Vorgehen verfolgt die Stadt das Ziel einer Verringerung der Abhängigkeit vom Automobil bei gleichzeitiger Förderung des Fußverkehrs. Außerdem wird die Reduzierung der negativen Auswirkungen des Verkehrs auf Mensch und Umwelt und damit eine insgesamt höhere Lebensqualität in der Stadt angestrebt

Evaluating Cyclists’ Route Preferences with Respect to Infrastructure

Providing a sufficiently appropriate route environment is crucial to ensuring fair and safe biking, thus encouraging cycling as a sustainable mode of transport. At the same time, better understanding of cyclists’ preferences regarding the features of their routes and their infrastructure requirements is fundamental to evaluating improvement of the current infrastructure or the development of new infrastructure. The present study has two objectives. The first is to investigate cyclists’ route preferences by means of a choice experiment based on a stated preference survey. Subsequently, the second objective is to compare cyclist preferences in two countries with different cycling characteristics (both in infrastructure as well as cyclists’ behavior). For this purpose, a graphical online stated preferences survey was conducted in Greece and Germany. Within the framework of statistical analyses, multinomial mixed logit discrete choice models were developed that allow us to quantify the trade-offs of interest, while distinguishing between the preferences of different user groups. In addition, user requirements in Greece, as a country with a low cycling share and very little dedicated bike infrastructure, were compared to the requirements in Germany, where cycling is popular and the infrastructure is well developed. The results over the whole sample indicate that subgroups value infrastructure differently according to their specific needs. When looking at country specifics, users from Greece are significantly more willing to accept longer travel times in return for higher-quality facilities. The utility of low speed limits in mixed traffic is also different. In Germany, low speed limits offset the disturbance caused by motorized traffic, but in Greece they do not. Consequently, the results help to asses which types of infrastructure are most sustainable from a user perspective and help to set priorities when the aim is to adapt the road infrastructure efficiently in a stable strategy