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Getting counted

Old 09-15-11, 08:53 PM
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Getting counted

On Saturday, I'm volunteering at a City event to attempt to quantify the number of bikes on the streets and, I assume, the number of trips by bicycle and foot traffic.

This is Des Moines' first official count. But it will apparently become a regular event, so that planners and other officials can get a handle on bicycle traffic growth in the city and react appropriately.

I'm hoping we eventually come out north of 1%, but right now when I say there's a lot of bike traffic, I'm just making a good guess.

With more rigorous statistics, the city can go after more funding and make bike infrastructure even better.

Does your city have these events?
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Old 09-15-11, 10:18 PM
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I was interviewed for a survey on our bike trail a few years ago. The results were used on the city website, and also for funding proposals and to make plans for new trail facilities. I guess it helped--the trail was extended and impoved a couple years later.

I was in the minority as somebody who used the trail for utilitarian purposes rather than purly recreational. I think if there was a new survey today, there would be a larger proportion of utility and everyday cyclists.
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Old 09-15-11, 10:33 PM
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How do they count bicycle commuters, anyway? I keep seeing confident-sounding statistics about how many people ride to work each day in each city, but have no idea how anyone keeps track of any of it. Sometimes I suspect that city traffic people just believe what bicycle advocates tell them, or that they just make up the numbers themselves.
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Old 09-15-11, 11:11 PM
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Next month I'll be helping to count the cyclists using our bike paths. The last time this was done, in 2008, they found that 50,000 trips were being made daily by bike, an increase of 450% over 2007. We're expecting a much higher number this year.
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Old 09-16-11, 01:20 AM
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I don't think they have anything like that in the Tampa Bay area. I believe that this area consistently rates as one of the worst for pedestrians and bicyclists. I know they count bicycle fatalities and I believe that within the last year [in the whole Tampa Bay region] 15 people on bicycles have been flattened by somebody in a motor vehicle.
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Old 09-16-11, 04:32 PM
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Originally Posted by bragi
How do they count bicycle commuters, anyway? I keep seeing confident-sounding statistics about how many people ride to work each day in each city, but have no idea how anyone keeps track of any of it. Sometimes I suspect that city traffic people just believe what bicycle advocates tell them, or that they just make up the numbers themselves.
For one thing, the Census Department surveys households to gather this information. The data is generally considered to be accurate.

https://www.census.gov/hhes/commuting/
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Old 09-16-11, 09:03 PM
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Originally Posted by bragi
How do they count bicycle commuters, anyway? I keep seeing confident-sounding statistics about how many people ride to work each day in each city, but have no idea how anyone keeps track of any of it. Sometimes I suspect that city traffic people just believe what bicycle advocates tell them, or that they just make up the numbers themselves.
I'll let you know tomorrow. I do know that this has been spread over 4 days, but the surveys and counting are only two hours. I think the plan is to do another in the Spring.
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Old 09-17-11, 10:02 AM
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Originally Posted by gerv
I'll let you know tomorrow. I do know that this has been spread over 4 days, but the surveys and counting are only two hours. I think the plan is to do another in the Spring.
It's great that you're willing to give up your Saturday to help out cycling in your community.
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Old 09-17-11, 05:51 PM
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Recently on a MUP (KATY Trail) that had electronic counters every few miles.
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Old 09-18-11, 10:30 AM
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Originally Posted by Roody
It's great that you're willing to give up your Saturday to help out cycling in your community.
I usually volunteer at the bike co-op on Saturdays. It provides me with a great workout, access to parts if I need them, provides an education in bike repairs... I'd say I'm getting a lot out of it. That and the fact that it keeps me off the couch...

I'm surprised more people haven't discovered the benefits.

Originally Posted by bragi
How do they count bicycle commuters, anyway? I keep seeing confident-sounding statistics about how many people ride to work each day in each city, but have no idea how anyone keeps track of any of it. Sometimes I suspect that city traffic people just believe what bicycle advocates tell them, or that they just make up the numbers themselves.
I sort of agree with you that statistics have their own voodoo feel to it. I believe the trick is to get a lot of data, capture that same dataset over time and do comparisons.

At these counting stations, we simply tallied bikes and pedestrians in separate columns, spread out over 15 minute time periods. We had a sheet for the North/South street and a sheet for the East/West... We also note things like weather, which was cold and breezy on my counting day.

These tallies are scheduled quarterly I believe and I guess the bikes might increase over time on that same corner.

I put a more detailed explanation in the link on my signature line if you are interested.

But yes, it's probably voodoo... the same sort of voodoo that previously had traffic engineers believe that they don't need to allocate resources for bikes and peds.
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Old 09-18-11, 08:17 PM
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Originally Posted by gerv
But yes, it's probably voodoo... the same sort of voodoo that previously had traffic engineers believe that they don't need to allocate resources for bikes and peds.
Yes, like the automatic traffic counters (the cables that go across the traffic lanes). They count cars and trucks, but bikes that roll over them are too light to be recorded.
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Old 09-18-11, 10:14 PM
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Originally Posted by Roody
Yes, like the automatic traffic counters (the cables that go across the traffic lanes). They count cars and trucks, but bikes that roll over them are too light to be recorded.
Are you sure about this? A few years ago ago, I talked to an acquaintance who's a traffic engineer in Seattle, and she complained about kids jumping up and down on the cables on their automated counters, totally screwing up their numbers.
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Old 09-19-11, 04:01 AM
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Originally Posted by Roody
Yes, like the automatic traffic counters (the cables that go across the traffic lanes). They count cars and trucks, but bikes that roll over them are too light to be recorded.
Depends on the counters. FWIW they were doing bike counts in Iowa City while I was there a couple of summers ago. They were counting them using an electric eye type device. They had a little sign posted saying what it was. I made sure to ride through it every chance I got.

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Old 09-19-11, 02:48 PM
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Originally Posted by bragi
How do they count bicycle commuters, anyway? I keep seeing confident-sounding statistics about how many people ride to work each day in each city, but have no idea how anyone keeps track of any of it. Sometimes I suspect that city traffic people just believe what bicycle advocates tell them, or that they just make up the numbers themselves.
Always quick to be critical without first doing research...

https://seattlebikeblog.com/2011/09/0...ate-september/
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Old 09-19-11, 07:33 PM
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Interesting that Seattle is moving to an automated system. I figure if we can send a man to the moon (we did that, didn't we?) we can figure a way to make the counter cable sensitive enough to register a bicycle.

But the non-automated, volunteer driven system is also trying to count peds... those guys are apt to step over the counter .
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Old 10-21-20, 10:42 AM
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Originally Posted by gerv
On Saturday, I'm volunteering at a City event to attempt to quantify the number of bikes on the streets and, I assume, the number of trips by bicycle and foot traffic.

This is Des Moines' first official count. But it will apparently become a regular event, so that planners and other officials can get a handle on bicycle traffic growth in the city and react appropriately.

I'm hoping we eventually come out north of 1%, but right now when I say there's a lot of bike traffic, I'm just making a good guess.

With more rigorous statistics, the city can go after more funding and make bike infrastructure even better.

Does your city have these events?
No, and I wish they did.
I live in Fort Worth, Texas, and this city is commuter bike desert.
Nearly devoid of streets that make bike commuting possible.
RD
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