Do people’s perceptions of neighborhood bikeability match “Reality”?

Abstract

Do people perceive the built environment the same as we objectively measure it? If not, what are the relative roles of the objective versus the perceived environment on bicycling behavior? This study, based on data from Portland, Oregon, explored the match or mismatch between the objective and perceived bicycling environment and how it affects people's bicycling behavior. The descriptive analysis indicated a fair agreement between perceived and objective measures. Older adults, women having children, less-educated and lower-income persons, and those who bicycle less tended to perceive their high-bikeable environment (measured objectively) as being a low-bikeable environment. In addition to the socio-demographics, this study also found that the social environment can play a role in the relationship between the objective and perceived environment. Finally, results of this study indicated that both the actual and perceived built environment are associated with bicycling behavior, particularly for utilitarian bicycling. For recreational bicycling, the objective environment attributes measured in this study are not significant factors, while perceptions do matter.

Cycling provision separated from motor traffic: a systematic review exploring whether stated preferences vary by gender and age

“…However, some studies examining experience found an independent “experience effect” shaping perceptions of cycling infrastructure instead of, or as well as, age and gender effects (e.g. Ma & Dill, 2015; Ma, Dill, & Mohr, 2014). …”

Evidence synthesis - A systematized literature review on the associations between neighbourhood built characteristics and walking among Canadian adults

“…The strong emphasis on selfreported measures of the built environment 16,19,22 in some studies is also cause for concern, as selfreport and objective measures of the same built envi ronment characteristics do not always cor respond. 29,30 Thus, the aim of this study was to undertake a systematized literature review of quantitative studies that esti mate the associations between the objec tively measured built environment and walking for different purposes among Canadian adults.…”

Synthèse des données probantes - Associations entre les caractéristiques de l’environnement bâti du quartier et la marche chez les adultes canadiens : une revue systématisée de la littérature

“…Jusqu'à présent, les revues systématiques qui ont exploré le lien entre l'environne ment bâti et l'activité physique ont de manière générale combiné des résultats d'études réalisées dans plusieurs contextes géographiques 14,19,21 16,19,22 dans certaines études constitue par ailleurs une source de préoccupation, car les mesures auto déclarées et les mesures objectives des car actéristiques d'un environnement bâti ne correspondent pas toujours 29,30 . Dans ce contexte, le but de notre étude était d'effectuer une revue systématisée des études quantitatives qui évaluent les asso ciations entre l'environnement bâti mesuré objectivement et la marche en fonction de divers objectifs chez les adultes canadiens.…”