Understanding cycling travel distance: The case of Medellin city (Colombia)

Abstract

The relevance of cycling as a mode of transportation is increasingly being recognized in many cities around the world, and the city of Medellin (Colombia) is no exception. To better understand cycling travel behavior in Medellin, we perform a multiple regression to analyze the importance of route characteristics in explaining cycling travel distance. We control for socioeconomic and built environment variables at the origin and destination. Our results reveal that the effects of the socio-economic and built environment characteristics at the origin and destination are modest or statistically insignificant in explaining travel distance. However, the variables that characterize the built and natural environment along the route are significant and appreciably improve the explanatory power of the baseline econometric model. An analysis of interacting effects shows that the interaction between the dedicated infrastructure along the route and the degree of deviation from direct routes has a relevant effect on explaining travel distance. The findings of this work are useful for designing cycling policy and developing more usable cycling infrastructure.

A database to analyze cycling routes in Medellin, Colombia

“…Please refer to Ospina et al. (2020) [1] for a full description of the variables included in each of the dimensions. These definitions correspond to the variables contained in the database presented in this paper.…”

“…2 Distribution of our sample framework according to the stratified sample zones (dark columns) in relation to the ODS sampling (gray columns). Based upon [1] and complemented with secondary information from [2] . …”

“…The resulting sampling ( N = 810 cyclists) represented 44% of the current bicycle users who responded to the survey and were distributed throughout the city of Medellin. The spatial distribution of the 810 trip origins as well as the routes are detailed in [1] .…”

“… Sample and Origin-Destination Survey (2012) distributions according to Medellin zone and income strata. Based upon [1] and complemented with secondary information from [2] . Figures included in the text and the Annex (the file names are the same as in the list) (Folder: Figures) : …”

“…For instance, these data have already been used by Ospina et al. (2020) [1] where they sought to understand cycling travel distance in Medellin city.…”