Using Computer Vision Data to Evaluate Bicycle and Pedestrian Improvements: A Before and After Case Study of Separated Bike Lane Conversion

The City of Boise, Idaho is about to embark on an ambitious effort to improve safety and mobility for bicyclists with a $180,000 investment along four arterials. The City’s project will convert traditional bike lanes into separated bike lanes by introducing candlestick bollards to physically separate vehicles and bicyclists. This safety improvement is motivated by the City’s recent adoption of Vision Zero goals. This project will test whether introducing candlestick bollards on bike lanes along four arterials close to grocery stores will increase bicycle trip making for shopping because the bollards will slow auto travel and increase cyclists’ perception of safety. The city selected bike lanes near grocery stores because there is a clear origin-destination pair between neighboring homes and the store and the decision to choose a bicycle doesn’t require a dispersed network to connect the origin and destination. The team will use computer vision devices to measure the number of bicycles and automobiles, speeds, and separation distance before and after the introduction of the bollards. The computer vision devices will be installed at the improvement locations and at locations that will not be improved for “control group” comparison. This PacTrans project will develop a repeatable process that cities, state DOTs, and other agencies throughout the Pacific Northwest can use to analyze the large amounts of data generated by modern computer vision devices. The results from this project will demonstrate how the data from this emerging technology can support decision making for other street improvements related to pedestrians and cyclists.

• Record URL:
  https://depts.washington.edu/pactrans/research/projects/using-computer-vision-to-evaluate-bicycle-and-pedestrian-improvements/

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Active
• Funding: $360000
• Contract Numbers:

  69A3551747110

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Pacific Northwest Transportation Consortium

  University of Washington
  More Hall Room 112
  Seattle, WA  United States  98195-2700
• Managing Organizations:

  University of Washington, Seattle

  Civil and Environmental Engineering Department
  201 More Hall, Box 352700
  Seattle, WA  United States  98195-2700
• Project Managers:

  MacKenzie, Don

• Performing Organizations:

  University of Washington, Seattle

  Civil and Environmental Engineering Department
  201 More Hall, Box 352700
  Seattle, WA  United States  98195-2700

  University of Idaho, Moscow

  Department of Civil Engineering
  P.O. Box 441022
  Moscow, ID  United States  83844-1022
• Principal Investigators:

  MacKenzie, Don

  Lowry, Michael

• Start Date: 20220316
• Expected Completion Date: 20230630
• Actual Completion Date: 0
• USDOT Program: University Transportation Centers Program

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bicycle lanes; Bollards; Computer vision; Safety campaigns; Traffic safety
• Geographic Terms: Boise (Idaho); Pacific Northwest
• Subject Areas: Highways; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01872465
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Pacific Northwest Transportation Consortium
• Contract Numbers: 69A3551747110
• Files: UTC, RIP
• Created Date: Feb 3 2023 9:36AM