City of Vancouver Bicycle Monitoring ProgramCity of Vancouver Bicycle Monitoring ProgramITE Quad Conference, Vancouver, BCMay 1, 2009
Lisa Leblanc P EngLisa Leblanc, P.Eng.Greenways and Neighbourhood TransportationCity of Vancouver
OutlineOutline
• Vancouver’s Cycling Network• Vancouver s Cycling Network• Bicycle Monitoring Program
G l d Obj ti– Goal and Objectives– Manual Counts
P t C t– Permanent Counters– Portable Automatic Counters
• Recent Findings• Conclusions
Vancouver’s Cycling NetworkVancouver s Cycling Network
• Cycling walking and transit are highest• Cycling, walking and transit are highest priority modes
• 400 lane kilometers of bike routes• 60,000 trips per day, p p y• Highest volume location > 700 bikes in
Peak HourPeak Hour
Bike Network
Goal of MonitoringGoal of Monitoring
To improve our understanding of bicycle facility use, allowing us to plan for necessary improvements to and y pexpansion of the bicycle network.
Objectives of the ProgramObjectives of the Program
1 To track the growth or decline of bike trips along1. To track the growth or decline of bike trips along particular routes
2. To improve our understanding of:o p o e ou u de s a d g oa. hourly variations in bike tripsb. daily variations in bike tripsy pc. seasonal variations in bike trips
3. To improve the efficiency with which we collect data
4. To refine the peak hour factor for bikes
Tracking Growth and DeclineTracking Growth and Decline
• Baseline dataBaseline data– Existing routes– New routesNew routes
• Peak Hour - Manual Counts at all Bikeway intersections, and at intervals along off-street gpaths
• Seasonal variations• Variations due to Weather• Future Screenline
Manual Count Locations
Advantages of Manual CountsAdvantages of Manual Counts
• Easy to manage• Easy to manage• Easy Data Management• Relatively inexpensive
Disadvantages of Manual CountsDisadvantages of Manual Counts
• Weather• Weather• Reliability of Staff• Limited benefit without a meaningful Peak
Hour Factor
Permanent Counters – Pilot programPermanent Counters Pilot program
• Locations:• Locations:– Local Street Bikeway– Off-Street Bikeway– Bridgesg– Seawall
• Recreational and Commuter routes• Recreational and Commuter routes
Permanent Counters
Permanent Counters - EquipmentPermanent Counters Equipment
• Inductive Loops• Inductive Loops• Data logger
– 15 minute intervals– 1 year data storage capacity1 year data storage capacity
• Pocket PC for data retrieval
ZELT Inductive Loop, with Eco Twin loggerZELT Inductive Loop, with Eco Twin logger
Advantages of Permanent CountersAdvantages of Permanent Counters
• Relatively inexpensive• Relatively inexpensive• Low maintenance• Easily installed• Loads of dataLoads of data
Challenges with Permanent CountersChallenges with Permanent Counters
• Data retrieval• Data retrieval• Data management• Limited Options for Equipment
Portable Automatic CountersPortable Automatic Counters
• Selective Pneumatic Tubes• Selective Pneumatic Tubes• Testing the Equipment to determine
impact of Installation Conditions:– Weather– Road conditions
Motor vehicle volumes– Motor vehicle volumes
Selective Pneumatic TubesSelective Pneumatic Tubes
Advantages of Portable Automatic CountersAdvantages of Portable Automatic Counters
• Easy to install• Easy to install• Reliable• Low maintenance• PortablePortable
Disadvantages of Portable Automatic Countersg
• Pneumatic Tubes• Pneumatic Tubes– Limited useful life– Manufactured in Europe– Not possible to repair… so farp p
Recent FindingsRecent Findings
• Census• Census• Peak Hour City-Wide• Seasonal Variations• Daily VariationsDaily Variations
2006 Census – Journey to Work2006 Census Journey to Work
Peak Hour city-WidePeak Hour city Wide
Seasonal VariationsSeasonal VariationsMonthly Variation in Bike Volume
Ontario Bikeway (½ Block South of 10th Avenue Bikeway)
1200
1400
800
1000
of B
ikes
0 3
400
600
Num
ber o
211 24
0233 23
220
015
2121 99
0
200
Ju JulAu Se Oc No De Jaune
ulyAugust
September
October
November
December
January
Month
Average Daily Bike Volume Peak Hour
Daily VariationDaily VariationTotal Daily Bicycle Volume, September
Ontario Bikeway (½ Block South of 10th Avenue Bikeway)
1,600
1,800
1,200
1,400
Vol
ume
800
1,000
tion
al B
ike
V
400
600
Bidi
drec
t
0
200
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 301 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
Day of the MonthRainWeekend
Bicycle Monitoring Program – next stepsBicycle Monitoring Program next steps
• Screenline Counts• Screenline Counts• Additional Permanent Counter Locations• Remote Data Retrieval• Data AnalysisData Analysis
– Refine Peak Hour Factor– Annual Report
ConclusionsConclusions
• Baseline Data• Baseline Data• Ongoing Monitoring
C ti t l t h l• Continue to explore technology• Data collection vs data processing vs data
analysis• Need Staff Committed to Monitoring, or…g,“Commit” your Staff…
Thank You