The Influence of Bicycle Oriented Facilities on Bicycle Crashes within Crash Concentrated Areas

Objective: This study analyzes environmental features that influence bicycle crashes within crash concentrated areas. This study particularly provides a systemic approach to analyzing major bicycle oriented facilities contributing to bicycle crashes within crash concentrated areas. Methods: This study applies geographic information systems (GIS) to the identification of crash concentrated areas in Riverside County, California using five years of crash data as well as the development of environment feature data inventory. Based on the data inventory, a regression method was applied to discover whether there was a correlation between the presence of bicycle facilities and the occurrence of bicycle crashes. Results: This study identifies that longer distance between crosswalks and bus stops are positively associated with bicyclist crashes, while structured medians contribute to the reduction of bicycle crashes. This study also suggests that parking lot entrance ways and parking lots with no physical barrier from sidewalks cause bicycle crashes on sidewalks. Conclusions: This study presents guidelines for local transportation planners to analyze the patterns of bicyclist crashes in order to improve roadway safety. This research also assists planners in effectively allocating scarce resources as they address issues of bicyclist safety.