This paper discusses the use of naturalistic video footage to examine the experience of cycling in Australia's two largest cities. The study centres on commercial cyclists, a cohort which grew rapidly during the COVID pandemic. Studies of commercial cycling - and particularly food delivery cycling - have focused primarily on the ills of delivery platforms and the gig economy. Complementing this research, we focus less on the work done by these cyclists and more on the spaces in which they work. As part of a larger study involving interviews and roadside observations, we used handlebar-mounted cameras to collect over 100 hours of footage from the perspective of these vital and often vulnerable workers. Here we focus on the insights naturalistic video footage can provide into commercial cyclists' experience of city spaces. Extending the literature on mobile methods, we examine naturalistic video as moving in two senses: physically, travelling with participants, and affectively, encouraging empathy between cyclists, researchers and audiences. Naturalistic video footage provides a rich supplement to other data, presenting vivid examples that extend points made in interviews and fixed recordings. Naturalistic video footage also tells other stories, particularly about how delivery cyclists performatively reshape cities to create more permeable pathways. Finally, commercial cyclists are frequently demonised or infantilised. Naturalistic video footage opens new ways of communicating their stories by fostering empathetic encounters - emotionally moving audiences and helping to reshape how we think and talk about cities.
On-demand delivery has changed the way cities move. Accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, bicycles are the leading mode meeting growing consumer demand, particularly for food. In Australia, this has generated considerable attention, but the voice of riders is missing. Using grounded theory to reveal rider perspectives, we combined interviews (n = 52), a naturalistic study (104 hours) and roadside video observations (216 hours) to provide the first comprehensive picture of the experiences of delivery cyclists (including parcel couriers and food delivery cyclists working in both 'gig' and salaried roles) in Sydney and Melbourne. Concerns about safety for food delivery cyclists have prompted some to boycott the industry, yet our research shows that there is much to celebrate. Here we report what riders say are the greatest risks to their safety and how they would like these to be addressed. The changes that riders want most relate to the built environment, particularly connected, separated infrastructure and regulation for better sharing of street space. In some cases, riders are already finding ways to enact this change.
Tram systems present safety risks to cyclists, however only limited research has explored this topic, of which most has focused on crash and hospital data, and severe crash events. This paper presents the first known cyclist market survey focused specifically on the experience of cyclists related to safety around trams, including unreported incidents and those that did not result in hospital attendance. Findings suggest that track-skid incidents are more common than track-wedge incidents, in contrast to previous research that emphasizes track-wedging as a larger issue than skidding. This is may be explained by the differing outcomes, with track-wedging more likely to result in injury. This research is thus significant in identifying track skidding as a major risk concern, causing a majority of crashes, while also confirming that track wedging is the major severity concern. In the last five years, 21% of respondents were involved in at least one tram-track-related crash. This was less than the share of respondents involved in falls (50%), crashes relating to road defects (36%) or collisions with motor vehicles (29%). However, half of survey respondents (52%) reported cycling on roads with tram tracks for 0-20% of their cycling, which might suggest that tram track-related crash rates are high given that most inner-city cycling occurs on roads without tracks. Track-skidding was found to be associated with wet conditions. Those involved in at least one track-skid in the last five years where more likely to have been cycling more than 3 years, but involvement in track-wedging was more likely amongst those cycling > 10 years and aged < 45 years. Implications for research and practice are suggested.
Lack of community engagement in road safety issues has been a difficult barrier to achieving greater road safety outcomes. In this project, our aim was to develop a road safety campaign that humanises cyclists. We devised a four-step approach to develop and implement the campaign to engage the community and achieve positive outcomes. The four steps were: 1) key stakeholder engagement, 2) community consultation, 3) campaign creation and delivery and, 4) evaluation. As this project was conducted in 2020/2021, we address how we managed disruptions caused by COVID-19. Key findings show the campaign was successful and increased understanding of safe behaviours and positive influence on attitudes about cyclists. The frameworks used for this project are provided and while the insights from this project apply to cyclist safety, the steps can be applied to improve collaborative projects to include community engagement in any area of road safety.
This chapter demonstrates a novel problem-solving approach to study the interaction at an intersection between a driver (turning left) and a cyclist (continuing straight ahead). According to the road rules in the Australian state of Victoria [RR141(2)], the bicycle rider must not ride on the left of a vehicle that is indicating and turning left at an intersection. However, road rules and the built environment were not designed in harmony and there is a high level of confusion about this road rule in the community. Further to these community concerns are professional ones. Previously, road safety and engineering pointed to the law (road rules), as being the source of collisions and injuries from this negotiation. From the position of the law, problems arose concerning how the road rules were applied in a road safety and engineering context. The road space and the road rules are two manifestations of controls and guidance. Safety science has identified that legal considerations are made externally to road engineering, if at all (Nicholls et al. in Cyclists and left turning drivers: a study of infrastructure and behaviour at intersections. Auckland, New Zealand, 2017 [1]). In order to develop solutions to the problem of left turn confusion and conflict, the research team hypothesised that a design approach (Lawson in How designers think—the design process demystified. Architectural Press, Oxford, 2006 [2]) could bring these fields together. The overarching method is the implementation of convivial design techniques [for example see Illich ( Illich in 197 Tools for conviviality. Harper and Row, New York, (1973) [3]), Sanders and Stappers (Sanders and Stappers in Convivial design toolbox: generative research for the front end of design. BIS Publishers, Amsterdam, 2016 [4])] to bring together safety science, legal investigation of road rules, and design. Three specific design techniques were used. First, two-dimensional drawing was tested by the research team. Next, two-dimensional drawings and photographs of key intersection types were combined with three-dimensional scale modelling using LEGO® elements in facilitated discussions with road safety practitioners and experts. The third technique brought road rule considerations to the foreground by encouraging road rule annotation on two-dimensional drawings.
Background: Feeling unsafe when riding a bicycle is a key barrier to cycling participation. To better understand the experiences of cycling on-road, this study aimed to explore the relationship between cyclists' subjective experiences and the lateral passing distance of motor vehicles. Methods: An on-road observational study was conducted in Victoria, Australia. Participants had a custom device installed on their bicycle that measured the lateral passing distance of motor vehicles and included a handlebar mounted "panic button" that participants could press when they felt that a passing event was too close or unsafe. A random effects logistic regression model was used to investigate the relationship between cyclist sex, motor vehicle type and infrastructure characteristics, and button press events. Results: A total of 217 button press events were recorded (1.2 % of all passing events) from 60 participants. For events with a passing distance closer than 100 cm, 10.4 % of these events had a recorded button press. The adjusted odds of a button press event were over three-fold higher when the rider was passed by a truck, compared to when the rider was passed by a sedan. The predicted probability of a button press event was higher in events occurring in road environments with no bike lane and no parked cars (1.9 %) compared to no bike lane with parked cars (1.2 %), a bike lane with no parked cars (0.9 %) and a bike lane with parked cars (0.7 %). Conclusions: The study identified important links between cyclists' subjective experience of unsafe events, motor vehicle types and infrastructure characteristics. Greater emphasis needs to be placed on capturing subjective experiences to inform and advance the development and implementation of safe and comfortable cycling infrastructure.
BACKGROUND:Empirical research investigating older adult homicide is sparse and rarely accumulated for greater insights. This systematic review and meta-analysis quantifies the prevalence and characteristics of homicide victimization among older adults (65 years and older) compared with younger adults (18-64 years). METHOD:We searched Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Cochrane, Criminal Justice Abstracts, EMBASE, MEDLINE, ProQuest, PsycINFO, Scopus, and Web of Science for studies published before December 31, 2018 (International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews registration: CRD42017054536). Included were English-language, original, peer-reviewed studies describing the homicide of older adults. Excluded were studies not meeting age criteria, residence as an institution, or with insufficient outcome variables. The review included 39 studies; 17 were included in the meta-analysis. Data were extracted via open access or from study authors. Heterogeneity was assessed through study-level random effects estimates. RESULTS:Pooled homicide rates per 100,000 population were 2.02 (95% CI [1.23, 3.33]) for older adults (n = 35,325) and 3.98 (95% CI [2.42, 6.53]) for younger adults (n = 607,224; rate ratio = .51, 95% CI [0.37, 0.70], p < .001). Proportion estimates for older adults: victim female 46.3%, location home 71.4%, offender familiar 25.2%, compared to stranger, 24.2%, motive argument 36.1%, compared to felony 30.8%, and weapon firearm 24.5%. Older adults were significantly different to younger adult victims (p = <.001) for female (OR = 2.5, 95% CI [2.02, 3.10]), home (3.87, 95% CI [3.45, 4.35]), stranger (1.81, 95% CI [1.66, 1.98]), argument (0.33, 95% CI [0.28, 0.39]), felony (2.78, 95% CI [2.58, 2.99]), and firearm (0.38, 95% CI [0.36, 0.40]). CONCLUSIONS:Homicide against older adults differs from younger adults and warrants specific research and tailored prevention strategies.
While a large body of literature shows that car share encourages low car ownership, the evidence is rather limited in the context of different types of car share (fleet-based versus peer-to-peer) and geographic settings (inner versus middle suburbs). This study was an in-depth investigation of the impact of (round-trip) car share on ownership, including forgone or delayed purchasing across different car share systems. An online survey was conducted with car share members (n = 651) and non-members (n = 290) in Melbourne, Australia. All respondents had a shared car available within a 10-min walk of their home. The first part of the paper compared member and non-member householders (socio-demographically and geographically adjusted) and found that members owned significantly fewer cars than non-members. In the second part of the paper, a quasi-longitudinal comparison of car share members was conducted. One in three households reduced car ownership, and most reductions occurred in the year prior to joining car share. Fleet-based car share members reported a larger reduction in car ownership compared to peer-to-peer car share members. Residents of inner and middle suburbs of Melbourne reported similar "net" reductions in car ownership, the reasons differed. Residents in densely populated inner suburbs used car share to avoid or delay car ownership while middle suburb residents used car share to avoid purchasing a second car. Findings provide valuable insights for transport policy settings which have the potential to influence car share availability and thereby support broader policy objectives to reduce dependency on private car ownership and use.
INTRODUCTION:In low-cycling countries, motor-vehicle traffic and driver behavior are well known barriers to the uptake of bicycles, particularly for utility cycling. Lack of separation between cyclists and faster-moving traffic is one key issue, while attitudes of drivers toward and/or harassment of cyclists is another. Cyclist-related driver education has been recommended as a means to improve driver-cyclist interactions.METHODS:The driver licensing process provides an opportunity for such education. The Cycle Aware module was developed to test and enhance novice drivers' knowledge of interacting safely with cyclists. It was piloted across three Australian jurisdictions targeting both novice and experienced drivers. Participants were asked to complete the Cycle Aware module and an accompanying survey. A total of 134 novice and 97 experienced drivers completed the survey with 42 novice and 50 experienced drivers going on to complete the module.RESULTS:Both groups of drivers scored equally well in the module but the very youngest and very oldest participants were more likely to have some incorrect responses. We did not find any relationship between correct module scores and attitudes toward cyclists. Survey results showed both novice and experienced drivers had somewhat positive attitudes toward cyclists. The two cohorts differed on several attitude questions. Sixty percent (60%) of novices compared to 30% of experienced drivers reported feeling concerned when sharing the road with cyclists, and novices were less likely to agree that cyclists had a right to use the roads. Conclusions and practical applications: The analysis suggests novices need to be better equipped to share roads confidently with cyclists and to recognize cyclists as legitimate traffic participants.
The benefits of car share, in terms of reduced car ownership and sustainable transport use have been widely recognised. Knowledge of motivators and barriers of car share adoption is crucial to inform policy, and yet this aspect has received little attention so far. This paper aims to comprehensively explore the range of psycho-social factors which determine the adoption of car share. In this study, two theoretical approaches were used to explore psycho-social determinants of car share adoption. First, the Theory of Planned Behaviour is used as a theoretical lens to identify the role of attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioural control in car share adoption. Second, the Theory of Innovation Diffusion is used to examine the process of adoption of car share and the barriers at different stages. While the former considers the determinants of the binary decision of becoming a car share, the latter unpacks the process of car share adoption. This qualitative study draws on data from five focus groups and 18 semi-structured interviews, conducted in Melbourne, Australia, with station-based car share member, ex-members and non-members. Insights confirmed that while cost, convenience and environmental concerns are important motivators, others factors also encourage car share use including sharing with the community, reducing/avoiding hassles related to car ownership (e.g. maintenance, parking) and, a desire to own fewer material possessions. Normative beliefs about car ownership, perceived difficulties in using car share (e.g. with children) and the planning and effort required to book and use car share were identified as some of the barriers. Barriers related to car share use varied depending on the stage of car share adoption. Initial barriers related to a lack of knowledge and normative beliefs about car ownership. The study also highlighted how motivators and barriers might vary for peer-to-peer and fleet-based car share. Insights from this study will be useful for car share operators and policymakers to address the practical and social barriers to car share adoption. (c) 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
The Australian Census of Population and Housing includes a responder’s Method of Travel to Work for Persons (MTWP) on Census Day. With some exceptions, responders can select multiple modes of transport. In Australia and overseas, this data has been used to estimate mode share and the proportion of Australians who utilize various active transport modes. This is especially true for cycling as there are scant data sources for Australian cycling exposure. The aims of this paper are to discuss weaknesses of MTWP data and the appropriateness of MTWP data to estimate cycling in Australia, and to assess changes in MTWP data relative to the introduction of bicycle helmet legislation. The use of MTWP data to estimate Australian cycling is limited due to: (1) data collection occurring on single days in winter once every five years, (2) it is not possible to identify a primary mode of transport, and (3) the 1976 data was not a full enumeration. MTWP data estimates about 1.5% of Australians cycle while other data sources are much higher ranging from 10% to 36%. With regard to bicycle helmet legislation, comparisons were made for each state/territory for the census immediately preceding helmet legislation and the following census. Overall, the proportion of cyclists among active transport users is similar from pre- to post-legislation (relative change=+1%, 95% CI: -13%, +18%), although all but two states/territories estimate an increase in cycling. In conclusion, the Australian government should invest in routinely collecting high-quality mobility data for all modes of travel to assist in the decision-making and assessment of road safety policies.
‘Hazard perception’ has become an integral part of novice driver education and training. Cyclists are often identified as one of many ‘hazards’ to look out for. We speculate that constituting cyclists as ‘hazards’, something that presents a danger or threat, may foster negative attitudes toward cyclists. Rather than accepting cyclists as ‘hazards’, our study examined the conditions that have made it possible to identify cyclists as ‘hazards’ in novice driver preparation. Informed by Michel Foucault's work on discursive practices, the analysis focused on the ‘road safety’ literature (1900–2017), the changing context in which road safety knowledge has been produced and the implications for the production of road space. This literature is important given the authority of scientific knowledge in western societies and its role in managing and governing populations. We found a shift in the middle of the twentieth century from drivers being identified as ‘hazards’ to drivers being identified as perceivers of ‘hazards’. At this time, researchers began studying drivers for their ability to recognise hazards: cyclists were routinely listed among the ‘hazards’ drivers should perceive. Out of 200 articles published on drivers' ‘hazard perception’ since the 1960s, one third categorised cyclists as ‘hazards’. Such research has informed the development and implementation of ‘hazard perception’ tests and, following Foucault, it participates in producing road space and shaping how drivers can think about themselves and other road users. While ‘scientific’ studies constitute cyclists as potential threats or sources of harm they lend authority to negative views of cyclists. We suggest ‘traffic participation’ as a more inclusive approach to driver education and training.
Car sharing as a mobility option is proliferating in many countries. International research on car sharing has been mostly quantitative, focused primarily on impacts in terms of net cars sold or car kilometres reduced. This study explores the process of travel behaviour change associated with car share adoption and how it varies among individuals. Qualitative methods were used to investigate how lifestyle, mobility and travel choices change in response to car sharing. Focus groups (n=5 groups) and semi-structured interviews (n=8) were conducted with car share members in inner and middle Melbourne, Australia. In most cases, availability of car share was reported to enable and facilitate changes in travel behaviour rather than causing or initiating them. Reconsideration of car ownership was usually triggered by key life events or long-term mobility decisions (e.g. residential relocation). Car sharers were classified into five user segments depending on their mobility trajectories post joining car share: car dependents, car avoiders, car limiters, car aspirers and car sellers. Car aspirers and car sellers reported the biggest changes in car ownership and travel choices (use of a car, public transport and active modes). Car avoiders and car limiters used car share to withstand mobility stress caused by key life events. The study highlights the value of a disaggregated understanding of car share impacts. It provides specific, practical insights that will be useful for tailoring policy, plans, and marketing measures to encourage the use of car share as a lever to limit car ownership and use.
Faced with the current growth and change to Western Australia's road network as well as the promotion and increased uptake of cycling, further investigation into crash, injury and road infrastructure characteristics is necessary. An in-depth study was conducted of 100 cyclists who were injured due to involvement in a crash that occurred on-road and resulted in an admission to a hospital. Information collected included a researcher-administered questionnaire, crash details from the Integrated Road Information System (IRIS), injury information from the State Trauma Registry and a virtual on-line site inspection. Overall, 42 % of crashes involved a motor vehicle and 58 % did not involve a motor vehicle. Twenty-one percent of all crashes involved cyclist loss of control, 18% were crashes with another cyclist, 18% involved hitting an object and 1% involved a pedestrian. . Bicycle crashes were severely under-reported with only 40 percent reported to the Police. Approximately half of crashes occurred at intersections (51 %) and half at midblock (non-intersection) sites (49 %). Fifty-seven percent of crashes that occurred at intersections involved a motor vehicle, whereas only 27% of crashes that occurred at midblocks involved a motor vehicle. The majority of cyclists' injuries were classified as minor according to the Injury Severity Score with the mean number of body regions injured being 4.5 (SD = 2.2). The mean number of days in hospital care was 5.2 days (SD = 5.6, range: 1-33). These findings can be used to guide road infrastructure treatments that reduce the risk of bicycle crashes in Western Australia and insights may inform action in other jurisdictions where cycling is increasing in popularity.
This study aimed to identify features of the road environment that increased the risk of on-road bicycle crashes in Perth, Australia between 2014-2017. This case-control study used a combination of an in-depth crash study and naturalistic study to compare the road environment characteristics of 100 case (crash) sites and 300 control sites where no crash occurred using conditional logistic regression. For intersection sites, roundabouts (adjusted OR: 2.98, 95% CI: 1.18, 7.56) and traffic lights (adjusted OR: 3.86, 95% CI 1.29, 11.63) significantly increased the risk of a bicycle crash, compared to priority control/uncontrolled intersections. For midblock (non-intersection) sites, roads with an incline (upwards/downwards) significantly increased the risk of a crash (adjusted OR: 3.39, 95% CI: 1.02, 11.22), compared to level roads. This study highlighted the risk of roundabouts, traffic lights and roads with an incline for bicycle crashes. Treatments that reduce vehicle speeds and encourage cyclists to claim the lane at roundabouts, as well as careful road design and road maintenance at traffic lights, may reduce the risk of crashes for cyclists. While it is impossible to remove hills and slopes from the topography, it is possible to select routes to target for bicycle infrastructure which are predominantly level.
Intuitive infrastructure is key to providing a safe road environment, particularly to intersections where drivers and cyclists need to share the space. This interaction can become confusing when the cyclist is continuing to travel straight and the driver is turning left. This study is a naturalistic observational study of four signalised intersections in Melbourne, Victoria. The study extends previous research and is the first to explore behaviour at complex intersections with multiple dedicated left turn lanes and the role of an advanced signal phase for cyclists. In total, 48 hours of footage were recorded. In this paper, a subset (12 hours, n=230 interactions) were analysed in detail. Interactions were consistent with highly predictable cyclist behaviour at the sites with a bike lane compared to high variation at the site with no cycling infrastructure. A further 98 interactions were avoided at those sites with an advanced green signal phase for cyclists. Benefits from providing separation between cyclists and drivers may be achievable through infrastructure, including both dedicated bicycle lanes and advanced signal phasing for cyclists.
Car sharing has been available in Australian cities since the early 2000s. While international studies show that car sharing leads to reduced dependence on personal cars (Martin et al., 2010, Lane, 2005), Australian academic research is missing. This paper is based on an electronic questionnaire survey of car share members (n=651) and non-members (n=290) in Melbourne, Australia. The study found that car share leads to a net reduction in car ownership among members. Car share members, specially fleet based car share members, own significantly fewer cars than nonmembers. These results are relevant for guiding future policy regarding this emerging form of transportation.
Priority on Australian roads is the safe and efficient movement of people and goods with an emphasis on the movement of motor vehicles. Comparatively there has been little consideration of safety when we are vulnerable road users, particularly cyclists. Fundamental to safety when we ride on the roads, is safe interactions between cyclists and drivers. This study involved an investigation into a specific interaction is not well understood – when a cyclist is travelling straight and a driver is turning left. More specifically, this study aimed to provide new insights to understand how engineering and legal aspects influence safety issues related to this interaction. To achieve this, definitions of safe and legal were explored and then applied video observations from interactions at intersections in metropolitan Melbourne, Victoria (n=275). Two thirds of interactions (188, 68.4%) had elements of non-compliance and potential contributing influences included infrastructure/road design (i.e. road markings, bikes lanes, pedestrians and number of vehicle lanes) as well as observed behaviours (cyclists and drivers). Findings highlight that while there is a connection between engineering (road design) and law (road rules), the two currently operate in parallel and are likely to be contributing to inconsistent behaviours and confusion among road users.
As public transport patronage levels increase worldwide, an issue many cities face is providing adequate infrastructure capacity for station access modes. A cost effective solution is to encourage the use of the bicycle for the 'first mile' link, particularly for rail commuters who currently drive but are within a cycling distance of the station. However, to promote cycling as a station access mode, a better understanding of the associated correlates are needed. This study aims to address this knowledge gap by identifying factors associated with increased rates of bicycle access to stations in Melbourne, Australia. Bicycle access counts at 207 metropolitan rail stations were analysed and factors related to the rail station catchment areas (demographic data and built/natural environment) and rail station characteristics were considered. Visual representation of the demographic and built/natural environment characteristics and eight generalized linear models were developed to identify significant factors. A higher number of cyclists riding to the station were associated with a range of factors including built/ natural environments: low sloping terrain; greater proportion of low speed local roads, diverse land use mix and increased bicycle crash count density. Station attributes: availability of secure bicycle parking facilities, increased train patronage, higher train frequency during the morning peak period and demographic characteristics: increasing median age were also correlated with a growth in bicycle access counts to stations.
BackgroundThe cornerstone of effective management in heart failure (HF) is the ability to self-care.Aims include i) To determine factors influencing self-care in HF patients with cognitive impairment (CI) and ii) to determine the influence of cognitive domains on self-care in patients with HF and CI.MethodsMEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE, EBSCOHost, PsychINFO, ProQuest Research Library, Health Technology Assessment Database, The Cochrane Library, Web of Science and Scopusdatabaseswere systematically searched. Original research describing the relationship between cognition and HF self-care in community-dwelling older persons with dementia/CI in English, published in a peer-reviewed journal from 1(st)January(2000)-22(nd)March(2016)was identified. Study and population characteristics, data sources, self-care processes, methods of cognitive assessment, cognitive domains affected, study outcomes, impact of impairment, and other risk factors of self-care impairment were abstracted by two reviewers.ResultsOf 10,688 studies identified, 14 met the inclusion criteria. Patients with HF and CI ranged from 14 to 73%. Where reported, self-care maintenance adequacy ranged from 50 to 61%; self-care management adequacy ranged from 14 to 36% and self-care confidence adequacy ranged from 0 to 44% on the Self-care of Heart Failure Index (SCHFI). All but one study predicted poor self-care ability according to poor outcome on cognitive testing. Additionally, specific cognitive domain deficits impaired self-care. Subjects with lower cognitive scores were less likely to seek assistance while subjects with depression had poor self-care abilities.ConclusionsClinicians must consider the type and severity of impairments in cognitive domains to tailor management. Awareness of depression, self-confidence and support access may modulate self-care ability.