A Street-Specific Analysis of Level of Traffic Stress Trends in Strava Bicycle Ridership and its Implications for Low-Stress Bicycling Routes in Toronto

Abstract

This study uses Strava bicycling data to investigate network level patterns of bicycle ridership in Toronto, Canada based on Level of Traffic Stress (LTS). We found that most bicycling occurred on a small fraction of the network, with just 10% of all roads and paths accounting for 75% of all bicycle kilometres travelled in 2022. Low-stress routes (LTS 1 and LTS 2) were more popular than high-stress routes for the top 80% most popular streets. The majority of bicycle kilometres travelled (84%) in LTS 2 occurred on routes with no bicycle infrastructure, highlighting the importance of quiet residential streets in forming a low-stress bike network. Despite high-stress conditions, some LTS 3 and LTS 4 streets were heavily used, suggesting infrastructure gaps in Toronto’s bicycle network.