An adaption of the level of traffic stress based on evidence from the literature and widely available data

Abstract Bicyclist quality of service measures are often difficult to apply on the network rather than facility level. Analyzing bicycle infrastructure on the network level is a critical process for managing bicycle infrastructure planning, design, and construction. The Level of Traffic Stress (LTS) measure fills this need for a network level measure. However, the originally proposed LTS measure leaves some gaps related to the designation of facilities and requires data that may be difficult to collect on a network level. The adapted LTS measure proposed here is based on traffic, roadway, and bikeway characteristics data available to most planning and engineering agencies and on evidence from the literature. The adapted LTS was used to classify and analyze bike network connectivity in two case studies to assess the methodology and demonstrate practical applications in infrastructure management. The first was a six-mile buffer zone of the Atlanta BeltLine Eastside Trail, and the second was a three-mile transit access zone around three transit stations in southwest Atlanta. The analysis was done in ArcGIS and provides results that can be easily interpreted by the public and decision makers, while relying on quantifiable traffic and roadway characteristics.