Bicycle ownership use and exposure: Participation and activity patterns in Melbourne, Australia

Abstract The users of bicycles are usually assumed to be children. The data collected in transportation studies is, therefore, of great value as it is sufficiently extensive to be used for a broader analysis of this question than would ever be possible in a special bicycle survey. Most bicycle surveys are aimed closely at schools, so that the concentrated traffic known to move to and from schools can be used to pinpoint other origins and destinations of these journeys. This paper reports a systematic analysis of bicycle access, usage and exposure for households of different compositions and people of different ages, based on transport survey home interview data for Melbourne (Australia) in 1978. Time profiles of involvement in cycling and other modes are presented for Melbourne, and comparisons are drawn with similar results from Adelaide. A key feature of this analysis is the decomposition of “trip rates” into participation rates and the corresponding activity rates (i.e. trips) of those who participate at all in the specified mode or activity. This technique is shown to have considerable potential.