Bicycle counter

{{Multiple issues|

}}

Bicycle counters are electronic devices that detect the number of bicycles passing by a location for a certain period of time.{{Cite web|url=https://ec.europa.eu/energy/intelligent/projects/sites/iee-projects/files/projects/documents/presto_fact_sheet_bicycle_baromoters_en.pdf|title=Bicycle barometers (bike counters)|last=European Commission}}{{Cite web|url=https://civitas.eu/content/measure-result-integrating-cycling-public-transport-malmo|title=Measure Result - Integrating cycling with public transport in Malmo {{!}} CIVITAS|last=Civitas initiative|website=civitas.eu|access-date=2020-04-27|archive-date=2021-04-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210425131247/https://civitas.eu/content/measure-result-integrating-cycling-public-transport-malmo|url-status=dead}} Some advanced counters can also detect the speed, direction, and type of bicycles.{{Cite web|date=2020-05-19|title=Active Transport Monitoring|url=https://metrocount.com/active-transport-monitoring/|access-date=2020-11-25|website=MetroCount|language=en}} These systems are sometimes referred to as bicycle barometers,{{Cite web|url=https://peopleforbikes.org/blog/the-magic-of-bike-barometers/|title=The magic of bike barometers|last=Brooks|first=Karen|date=2014-09-22|website=PeopleForBikes|language=en|access-date=2020-04-24|archive-date=2020-11-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112001556/http://peopleforbikes.org/blog/the-magic-of-bike-barometers/|url-status=dead}} but the term is misleading because it indicates the measurement of pressure. Most counting stations only consist of sensors, the internal computing device, although some use a display to show the total number of cyclists of the day and the current year. There are counting stations all over the world in over hundreds of cities,{{Cite web|url=https://www.eco-compteur.com/en/products/|title=Products|website=Eco-Counter|language=en-GB|access-date=2020-04-24|archive-date=2021-02-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210201030859/https://www.eco-compteur.com/en/products/|url-status=dead}} for example in Manchester, Zagreb, or Portland. The first bicycle counting station was installed in Odense, Denmark, in 2002.

Persuasive aspects

Bicycle counters are mainly being installed to assist city planning with reliable data on the development of bicycle usage.{{Cite web|url=https://hamburg.adfc.de/verkehr/themen-a-z/gute-beispiele/fahrradbarometer/|title=Fahrradbarometer|website=hamburg.adfc.de|language=de|access-date=2020-04-25|archive-date=2020-03-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200321190235/https://hamburg.adfc.de/verkehr/themen-a-z/gute-beispiele/fahrradbarometer/|url-status=dead}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.cycling-embassy.dk/2012/06/06/cycle-cities-awarded-bicycle-counters/|title=Cycle cities awarded bicycle counters|last=Magni|first=Marie|date=2012-06-06|website=Cycling Embassy of Denmark|language=en-US|access-date=2020-04-25|archive-date=2020-07-19|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200719093630/http://www.cycling-embassy.dk/2012/06/06/cycle-cities-awarded-bicycle-counters/|url-status=dead}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.general-anzeiger-bonn.de/bonn/stadt-bonn/streit-um-fahrradbarometer_aid-43163463|title=Kennedybrücke in Bonn: Streit um Fahrradbarometer|last=Wein|first=Martin|website=GA BONN|date=29 December 2016 |language=de|access-date=2020-04-25}} Bicycle counting stations are said to raise awareness for cycling as a mode of transportation, encourage more people to use their bicycles{{Cite web|url=http://fudder.de/fahrradzaehler-bei-der-wiwili-bruecke-eingeweiht|title=Fahrradzähler bei der Wiwili-Brücke eingeweiht - Freiburg - fudder.de|last=Hoeft|first=Antonia|website=fudder.de|date=2 May 2012 |language=de|access-date=2020-04-25}} and give cyclists acknowledgement. There has been no representative study on the impact of bicycle counters on citizens or by-passers, but some early empirical clues that urban visualizations can "become appropriate communication media for sharing, discussing, and co-producing socially relevant data".{{Cite journal|last1=Moere|first1=Andrew Vande|last2=Hill|first2=Dan|date=2012-04-01|title=Designing for the Situated and Public Visualization of Urban Data|journal=Journal of Urban Technology|volume=19|issue=2|pages=25–46|doi=10.1080/10630732.2012.698065|s2cid=111348602|issn=1063-0732}}

To increase visibility, bicycle counters are mostly installed at positions with high traffic volume and visibility to a range of road users.

They have been called urban visualizations and fulfill certain criteria of ambient intelligence, such as being embedded, context-aware and adaptive.{{Cite book|last1=Pousman|first1=Zachary|last2=Stasko|first2=John|title=Proceedings of the working conference on Advanced visual interfaces - AVI '06 |chapter=A taxonomy of ambient information systems |date=2006|chapter-url=http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?doid=1133265.1133277|language=en|location=Venezia, Italy|publisher=ACM Press|pages=67–74|doi=10.1145/1133265.1133277|isbn=978-1-59593-353-9|s2cid=5297964}} Bicycle counting stations can be described as persuasive technology.{{Cite book|last1=Claes|first1=Sandy|last2=Slegers|first2=Karin|last3=Vande Moere|first3=Andrew|title=Proceedings of the 2016 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems |chapter=The Bicycle Barometer |date=2016-05-07|language=en|location=San Jose California USA|publisher=ACM|pages=5824–5835|doi=10.1145/2858036.2858429|isbn=978-1-4503-3362-7|s2cid=14648321}}

"Through sensing technology, a display can act as a tool that increases the capability to capture a behavior (e.g., measuring residential energy consumption, bicycle use, etc.); through its visual imagery, it can function as a medium that provides useful information, such as behavioral statistics or cause-and-effect relationships; and through its networking ability, it can become a social actor, encouraging community-based feedback and social interaction".

Technical setup

Different techniques are used for detection of bicycles, such as built in induction loops, piezoelectric strips{{Cite web|date=2016-05-02|title=RoadPod® VP|url=https://metrocount.com/products/roadpodvp-permanent-piezo-classifier/|access-date=2020-11-25|website=MetroCount|language=en}}, pneumatic hoses,{{Cite web|date=2016-09-12|title=RidePod® BT|url=https://metrocount.com/products/ridepod-bike-tube-counter/|access-date=2020-11-25|website=MetroCount|language=en}} infrared sensing or cameras. Different setups provide different advantages such as more precise counting, battery life,{{Cite news|title=Validation of MC5720 on Albert St, East Melbourne|work=Sinclaire Knight Metz|url=https://metrocount.com/downloads/about/reviews/Albert_St_Validation_v1.pdf}} reduced costs or differentiation between different road users such as cyclists, pedestrians or cars.{{Cite |last1=Greene-Roesel|first1=Ryan|last2=Diogenes|first2=Mara Chagas|last3=Ragland|first3=David R.|last4=Lindau|first4=Luis Antonio|date=2008-04-01|title=Effectiveness of a Commercially Available Automated Pedestrian Counting Device in Urban Environments: Comparison with Manual Counts|url=https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2n83w1q8|language=en}} Independent testing has shown that pneumatic tubes can record with over 95% accuracy{{Cite news|title=Test d'un compteur à tubes pneumatiques du type MetroCount 5620|work=Centre de recherches routières (Belgique)|url=https://metrocount.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/LeafletCRR-Tests-MC5620_AvWoeste_final.pdf}} and piezoelectric sensors reach 99% accuracy. Manufacturers state a 90% precision for induction loops.

Data

Unlike manual counting or other bicycle related interventions or citizen science, where citizens manually put in data,{{Cite book|last1=Claes|first1=Sandy|last2=Slegers|first2=Karin|last3=Vande Moere|first3=Andrew|title=Proceedings of the 2016 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems |chapter=The Bicycle Barometer |date=2016-05-07|language=en|location=San Jose California USA|publisher=ACM|pages=5824–5835|doi=10.1145/2858036.2858429|isbn=978-1-4503-3362-7|s2cid=14648321}} bicycle counting stations automatically generate citizen related data.{{Cite web|url=https://www.eco-compteur.com/en/home/|title=Home - Automated pedestrian & bicycle counters|website=Eco-Counter|language=en-GB|access-date=2020-04-24|archive-date=2020-06-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200628165838/https://www.eco-compteur.com/en/home/|url-status=dead}} Automatic counting systems are said to be cheaper than manual counting by people. Because of the use of communication technology in the urban context, bicycle counters can be counted as smart city technology, urban informatics or urban computing. Most of the organizations who install bicycle counters, provide the number of cyclists as open data.{{Cite web|url=http://data.eco-counter.com/ParcPublic/?id=4586|title=Bike Count Display Interactive Map|last=EcoCounter|website=data.eco-counter.com|access-date=2020-04-25}}

Criticism

There has been criticism on the precision of the counting{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3WFaB3hydE|title=Realer Irrsinn: Fahrradzählstation in Hamburg {{!}} extra 3 {{!}} NDR|last=extra 3|date=15 October 2015|website=YouTube}} and on the cost of bicycle counters as a waste of tax money (14000-31000€).{{Cite web|url=https://www.general-anzeiger-bonn.de/bonn/stadt-bonn/streit-um-fahrradbarometer_aid-43163463|title=Kennedybrücke in Bonn: Streit um Fahrradbarometer|last=Wein|first=Martin|website=GA BONN|date=29 December 2016 |language=de|access-date=2020-04-27}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.abendblatt.de/hamburg/article208360677/Hier-verschwendet-Hamburg-seine-Steuergelder.html|title=Hier verschwendet Hamburg seine Steuergelder|last=Hamburg|first=Hamburger Abendblatt-|date=2016-10-06|website=www.abendblatt.de|language=de-DE|access-date=2020-04-27}}

Gallery

File:Piezo strips.jpg|Piezoelectic bike counter in Haarlem, the Netherlands

File:Bicycle counter.jpg|A bicycle counter in Mannheim with pneumatic hoses to detect the number of cyclists

File:Abádszalók (Tiszaderzsi szivattyútelep) Tiszamenti kerékpárút (EuroVelo-11) Kisköre felé 2018-09-09.JPG|Narrowed passage at the Tisza Cycleway in Hungary with cameras to count cyclists

File:BikePedCounterSetup 2008.gif|The technical equipment of a bicycle and pedestrian counter next to a cycle path, using an infrared sensor in Burlington

References

Category:Cycling infrastructure

Category:Road traffic management

Category:Bicycle transportation planning

Category:Road transport

Category:Counting instruments