Mertens Lieze, Van Dyck Delfien, Ghekiere Ariane, De Bourdeaudhuij Ilse, Deforche Benedicte, Van de Weghe Nico, Van Cauwenberg Jelle
Department of Movement and Sport Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, Watersportlaan 2, 9000, Ghent, Belgium.
Research Foundation Flanders (FWO), Egmontstraat 5, 1000, Brussels, Belgium.
Int J Health Geogr. 2016 Sep 1;15(1):31. doi: 10.1186/s12942-016-0058-4.
Micro-environmental factors (specific features within a streetscape), instead of macro-environmental factors (urban planning features), are more feasible to modify in existing neighborhoods and thus more practical to target for environmental interventions. Because it is often not possible to change the whole micro-environment at once, the current study aims to determine which micro-environmental factors should get the priority to target in physical environmental interventions increasing bicycle transport. Additionally, interaction effects among micro-environmental factors on the street's appeal for bicycle transport will be determined.
In total, 1950 middle-aged adults completed a web-based questionnaire consisting of a set of 12 randomly assigned choice tasks with manipulated photographs. Seven micro-environmental factors (type of cycle path, speed limit, speed bump, vegetation, evenness of the cycle path surface, general upkeep and traffic density) were manipulated in each photograph. Conjoint analysis was used to analyze the data.
Providing streets with a cycle path separated from motorized traffic seems to be the best strategy to increase the street's appeal for adults' bicycle transport. If this adjustment is not practically feasible, micro-environmental factors related to safety (i.e. speed limit, traffic density) may be more effective in promoting bicycle transport than micro-environmental factors related to comfort (i.e. evenness of the cycle path surface) or aesthetic (i.e. vegetation, general upkeep). On the other hand, when a more separated cycle path is already provided, micro-environmental factors related to comfort or aesthetic appeared to become more prominent.
Findings obtained from this research could provide advice to physical environmental interventions about which environmental factors should get priority to modify in different environmental situations.
The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Ghent University Hospital.
B670201318588. Registered at 04/10/2013. http://www.ugent.be/ge/nl/faculteit/raden/ec.
微观环境因素（街道景观中的特定特征）而非宏观环境因素（城市规划特征），在现有社区中更易于改变，因此针对环境干预而言更具实际操作性。由于通常不可能一次性改变整个微观环境，本研究旨在确定在增加自行车出行的物理环境干预中，哪些微观环境因素应优先作为目标。此外，还将确定微观环境因素之间对街道自行车出行吸引力的交互作用。
共有1950名中年成年人完成了一份基于网络的问卷，问卷包含一组12个带有经过处理照片的随机分配选择任务。每张照片中对七个微观环境因素（自行车道类型、限速、减速带、植被、自行车道表面平整度、整体维护情况和交通密度）进行了处理。采用联合分析来分析数据。
为街道提供与机动车交通分离的自行车道似乎是提高街道对成年人自行车出行吸引力的最佳策略。如果这种调整在实际中不可行，与安全相关的微观环境因素（即限速、交通密度）在促进自行车出行方面可能比与舒适度相关的微观环境因素（即自行车道表面平整度）或美观度相关的微观环境因素（即植被、整体维护情况）更有效。另一方面，当已经提供了更分离的自行车道时，与舒适度或美观度相关的微观环境因素似乎变得更加突出。
本研究获得的结果可为物理环境干预提供建议，即在不同环境情况下应优先修改哪些环境因素。
该研究经根特大学医院伦理委员会批准。
B670201318588。于2013年10月4日注册。http://www.ugent.be/ge/nl/faculteit/raden/ec。
