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Experienced and Perceived Safety of Pedestrians and Cyclists on the UBC Campus

Experienced and Perceived Safety of Pedestrians and Cyclists on the UBC Campus

As cycling is an increasingly common mode of transportation in many cities, conflicts between cyclists and other road users present a growing safety concern. While bicycle-motor vehicle conflicts are most often studied, conflicts between cyclists and pedestrians is a growing issue, particularly where cyclists and pedestrians share multi-use paths. The University of British Columbia (UBC) Vancouver […]
Web data extraction and mining to help cities understand the impacts of new mobility services

Web data extraction and mining to help cities understand the impacts of new mobility services

The transportation sector is entering an era of increasingly both “big” and “proprietary” data. New technological trends are emerging that shift the most critical sources of transportation system data from roadside infrastructure to personal and vehicle-based communications. This trend has been moving data and knowledge from the public realm to the private, inhibiting public debate […]
Managing inter-class student travel on a large university campus

Managing inter-class student travel on a large university campus

In this study we analyze student travel between classes on the UBC campus, investigating issues in distances and routing, with consideration of different travel options and modal availability (by foot, wheelchair, skate, personal bicycle, shared bicycle, etc.). A wide range of solutions and countermeasures are explored, including course scheduling strategies, changes to facility design and […]
Information and communication technology for arborists to reduce urban truck travel and emissions

Information and communication technology for arborists to reduce urban truck travel and emissions

ChipDrop is a new information and communication technology connecting urban arborists with gardeners seeking wood chips. The new service has the potential to increase efficiency for arborists and in the process reduce urban truck travel and emissions. In this project, we use data provided by ChipDrop to analyze changes in operational efficiency and estimate reductions […]
Field Bicycle Coast-Down Testing

Field Bicycle Coast-Down Testing

For bicycles and other human powered vehicles, it is relevant to understand the links between energy expenditure and travel behavior (e.g., route and speed choices) as well as travel impacts (e.g., pollutant intake/uptake and health effects). Energy expenditure and breathing rate are related to the resistance forces that bicyclists must overcome, in particular rolling resistance (i.e. the resistance due to […]
Best Practices for Bike Storage Facilities in Multi-Unit Residential Buildings

Best Practices for Bike Storage Facilities in Multi-Unit Residential Buildings

Multi-unit residences often have crowded or underutilized bicycle storage areas that hinder active transportation choices. Using market housing as well as faculty and staff housing on the University of British Columbia’s campus, this study is conducting a survey of residents as well as field studies to identify the current and latent demand for bicycle storage. […]
Environmental and operational analysis of a novel urban mobility service using human-electric hybrid vehicles

Environmental and operational analysis of a novel urban mobility service using human-electric hybrid vehicles

VeloMetro is a new urban mobility company dedicated to providing a practical and sustainable transportation alternative for a wide array of urban travelers. VeloMetro has designed a fully-enclosed electric-assist velomobile, and is introducing a vehicle sharing service, Veemo, using the new vehicles. Veemo is a truly novel system: the vehicles blend characteristics of bicycles and […]
Incorporating electric bicycles into urban transportation systems in British Columbia

Incorporating electric bicycles into urban transportation systems in British Columbia

Electric bicycles are emerging as an urban travel mode that blends some of the convenience of private automobiles with some of the emissions, congestion, travel cost, and physical activity benefits of traditional non-motorized bicycles. Promotion of electric bicycles could increase non-auto mode share, but relatively little is known about the potential for electric bicycles to […]
Incorporating pollution inhalation and energy expenditure into network analysis for active transportation

Incorporating pollution inhalation and energy expenditure into network analysis for active transportation

The objectives of this research are to investigate the effects of transportation networks on energy expenditure and pollution inhalation during active travel, including variations in travel speed and breathing rate, and to develop and apply multi-criteria route and network analysis tools that integrate pollution inhalation and energy expenditure with other travel costs (time, crash risk, noise, […]