Active accessibility: A review of operational measures of walking and cycling accessibility

Abstract

Active travel is enthusiastically promoted in the Western world due to its clear and demonstrated individual and collective benefits. While active travel has been shown to be associated with features of the built environment such as density and land-use mix, it is also associated with walking and cycling accessibility-which we designate as active accessibility. However, the measurement of active accessibility is not straightforward and it can represent significantly different features of the built environment. This paper presents an extensive review of published research that measures active accessibility. We classified the literature into four categories based on the methodology used: distance-based, gravity-based or potential, topological or infrastructure-based, and walkability and walk score-type measures. A fifth category was created to classify outliers consisting of distinct methodological approaches or hybrids of the four main categories. We argue that almost all of these methods have conceptual and computational limitations, and that there are inconsistencies in the use of concepts and terms. Furthermore, no sensitivity analysis was carried out on the selected parameters. We conclude by presenting some guidelines that might improve the value and clarity of active accessibility research, theory, and practice.

The use of network analyst tool and 2SFCA method to assess fire service effectiveness in a city, as exemplified by Łódź

“…The arbitrary use of a figure grid (e.g. hexagons) or districts and sub-districts is artificial, and it may considerably distort the real spatial relations [Benenson et al 2011;Vale et al 2016], which is why primary fields, which tend to be more "natural" for the researched phenomenon, were introduced. They were formed by "cutting" the city surface and the 20-kilometre buffer with a grid of isochrones of access to individual fire departments.…”

Evidence of Green Areas, Cycle Infrastructure and Attractive Destinations Working Together in Development on Urban Cycling

“…Next, on a second strategic level of the research: to what extent can the layout of cycling infrastructure be based favourably on spatial continuity between university facilities and green areas? These two questions give a global perspective of the research focus to contribute to urban planning with greater decision-making capability in designing out and encouraging active accessibility [21] combined with information and incentives from GPS-based apps.…”

“…Flow (n) [11,12,22] nº of cycling routes (GPS) passing through the green area plus a 100 m buffer zone surrounding it. [21,26,27] Built area for commercial use within a 1 km buffer around the green area.…”

“…Traffic 12. Parking (n) [1,12,21,33,34] nº of public car parks within a 1 km buffer around the green area.…”

Opportunities for walkability in Szeged and Valencia

“…Creating walkable compact cities is a global priority (Giles-Corti et al 2014) because neighbourhoods with those features promote active modes of transportation, such as walking and cycling (TRB 2005). To this end, a complete pedestrian network in the built environment is necessary because it would have a positive influence on walking (Frank et al 2011, Vale et al 2016). …”