Motor-vehicle drivers' behavioral response to increased bicycle traffic

摘要

Introduction: This paper investigates whether motor-vehicle driver behavior changes when there are more bicycles on the road. Method: Data on trips on a rapidly expanding public bike share scheme in Chicago are combined with speed violations captured by a network of 79 cameras. Using weekly data from July 2014 to December 2016, violations at 26 sites where there was a considerable increase in bicycle traffic are compared with a control group of 53 locations where rental bicycles are not available. Results: An increase in rental bicycle usage is statistically related to a reduction in the number of speeding violations, with an estimated elasticity of -0.04. Conclusion: The increased presence of bicyclists makes at least some motorists drive more cautiously. (C) 2020 National Safety Council and Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.