A mobile sense of place: A user-centred methodology to study urban cycleways

Abstract

The integration of active urban transport, including cycling, is an important aspect of sustainable urban design. This presentation reflects on research that derived from a funded National Science Challenge 11 (NSC 11) “Building better homes, towns and cities” project. Our research team developed a user-centred methodology for collecting, categorising, visualising, and interpreting data on urban cycling infrastructure and related cycling events using smart phones to measure accelerometer, gyroscope, speed, and global positioning (GPS), and 360-degree cameras to record audio and visual data. We collected data on eight Major Cycle Routes (MCR) in Christchurch, and used data from one of the routes to test the methodology, explore applications, and examine future research opportunities to support the planning, design, and implementation of urban cycleways. Dr Andreas Wesener, Senior Lecturer in Urban Design at the School of Landscape Architecture (SOLA) at Lincoln University, was the lead researcher of the project. Recently, he has teamed up with SOLA applied computer scientists for a new research project with the goal to automate previously manual analysis processes and enhance the applicability of the new methodology.