GIS Tools For Assessing Bicycle Suitability

Training VideoApril 2012

Mike LowryCivil EngineeringUniversity of Idaho

Training Video Outline

1. Background

2. How to use the new tools

3. How to enter your community’s data

ITD Statewide Customer Satisfaction Survey75% of respondents: safe biking is important

Project Goal:Create GIS tools to assess comfort and safety of bicycling.

Purpose and Scope:To help engineers and planners prioritize improvement projects.

Final Report

GIS Tools-Source code

-Help files-Example data

Bicycle SuitabilityPerceived comfort and safety of a linear section of bikeway (streets and shared-use paths)

BikeabilityPerceived comfort, safety, and convenience of an entire bikeway network to access important destinations (community-wide)

Bicycle FriendlinessGeneral perceptions about all aspects of bicycle travel, including bikeability, laws and policies to promote biking, education efforts to encourage biking, and general acceptance of bicycling throughout the community

Name of Method Acronym Author DateBicycle Safety Index Rating BSIR Davis 1987Bicycle Stress Level BSL Sorton and Walsh 1994Road Condition Index RCI Epperson 1994Interaction Hazard Score HIS Landis 1994Bicycle Suitability Rating BSR Davis 1995Bicycle Level of Service BLOS Botma 1995Bicycle Level of Service BLOS Dixon 1996Bicycle Suitability Score BSS Turner et al 1997Bicycle Compatibility Index BCI Harkey et al 1998Bicycle Suitability Assessment BSA Emery and Crump 2003Rural Bicycle Compatibility Index RBCI Jones 2003Compatibility of Roads for Cyclists CRC Noel et al 2003Bicycle Level of Service BLOS Zolnik 2007Bicycle Level of Service BLOS Jensen 2007Bicycle Level of Service BLOS Petritsch et al 2007Bicycle Environmental Quality Index BEQI SFDPH 2009Bicycle Quality Index BQI Birk et al 2010Bicycle Level of Service BLOS HCM 2011

BICYCLE SUITABILITY SCORE

BICYCLE SUITABILITY ASSESSMENT

BICYCLE LEVEL OF SERVICE

AttributeMethod

BSL BSS BCI BSA BLOSwidth of outside lane x x x x xwidth of bike lane x x xwidth of shoulder x x x xon-street parking x x xpresence of curb x xvehicle traffic volume x x x x xnumber of lanes x xspeed limit x x x x xpercent heavy vehicles x xpavement condition x x xelevation grades xadjacent land use x xstorm drain grate xphysical median xturn lanes x xfrequent curves xrestricted sight distance x

numerous driveways xpresence of sidewalks x

New GIS Tools

ArcGIS 10Basic License

[The next section of the video uses ArcGIS. The following slides outline the material.]

Introduction• Look at files using Explorer• Look at files using Catalog• Look at Example Files in Catalog

BLOS Tool• Pull in Streets. Open attribute table.• Look at Interface and Help for Calculate BLOS• Execute Calculate BLOS• Look at new output attribute table

BSL and BSS Tools• Execute Calculate BSL. • Execute Calculate BSS.

Other BLOS Tools• Execute Calculate BLOS again, comment on warning for

already existing fields • Look at other BLOS tools• Return to powerpoint

Street

Intersection

Travel Direction

Facility

BLOS Tools• Execute Calculate BLOS Intersection• Execute Calculate BLOS Facility• Comment on Data Preparation Tools• Execute Create Intersection File, Open Attribute Table• Pull in Pathways• Execute Calculate BLOS Pathway

Bikeability Explanation• Pull in GroceryStore_destinations• Review the concept of Bikeability• Execute Append for Pathways to Streets and call it

bikeways.

Bikeability Tool• Pull in Zones.• Pull in grocery store destinations and explain. • Execute Calculate Community-wide Bikeabilty for existing

grocery stores. • Pause because takes 6 (5.5) minutes on my laptop

computer. The report discusses execution times for different zone sizes.

• Return to ArcGIS. Look at last few seconds and explain what is happening.

• Look at results. Discuss good bikeability areas.• Execute again for proposed grocery store.

Scenario 1:Existing Grocery

Stores

Scenario 2:With New Grocery

Store

Grid_twopoints

12Ai

0.01 - 0.10

0.11 - 0.20

0.21 - 0.30

0.31 - 0.40

BikeabilityAi

0.00 - 0.05

0.06 - 0.10

0.11 - 0.15

0.16 - 0.20

0.21 - 0.25

0.26 - 0.30

DestinationDestination

scenario2_bothExistss

Existing bike lane or pathway

Proposed bike lane or pathway

LegendDestinations

Legendnewbike

Added bike path

Scenario 1:Without New Bike

Path

Scenario 2:New Bike Path

[Return to ArcGIS.]

Bikeability Tools• Pull in, open, and look at parcel file, but don’t Execute.

• Execute Identify Probable Routes to a Destination Jr. High school using zones.

• Execute Identify Probable Routes to a Destination Jr. High school using student addresses.

Statistic Tool• Execute Statistic tool for all three.

Create Zones Tool• Execute Create Analysis Zones. Note that smaller zones will

require more time.

Create Streets File• Execute Create Streets File• Look at blank attribute table. Note street class• Look at streets that are “isolated” or outside of study area

link 1

link 2

link 3

link 4 All 4 links share one end point. Correct Topology

There is supposed to be four links, but instead there are two unconnected links. (This would be correct topology if link 1 is in fact an overpass across link 2 without any physical connection in the real world.)

link 1

link 2

Link 4 is incorrectly not sharing an endpoint with the other links.

link 1

link 2

link 3

link 4

Incorrect Topology

[Go to arcgis.com help.Search “Topology”, look at “Topology basics.” Explain.Search “Topology errors”, look at “Geodatabase topology rules and…”. Explain there are few existing tools to help create topology.Return to powerpoint to show Create Street File.]

Enter Data• Look at table in excel.• Execute Enter Data and look at output.

Thank you!For more information:

Maureen Gresham, bikeped@itd.idaho.gov

Questions?