Environmental influences on older adults’ transportation cycling experiences: A study using bike-along interviews

Abstract

Cycling for transport offers an opportunity to promote active and sustainable mobility among the growing population of older adults. However, only a few studies examined how environmental factors may promote cycling for transport among older adults. Purposeful convenience sampling was used to recruit 40 older adults in Flanders, Belgium. Researchers and participants made a cycle trip, during which bike-along interviews were used to obtain in-depth and context-sensitive information about the environmental factors influencing their perceptions and experiences, which were analysed using inductive content analysis.A model including seven environmental themes emerged; traffic safety, cycling infrastructure, road design & maintenance, connectivity, aesthetics, hilliness and weather. Traffic safety appeared to be the most important concern. Participants felt safer where cycling tracks were well-separated from motorized traffic and where clearly demarcated crossings were present. They expressed preferences for cycling tracks being wide, obstacle-free, even and well-separated from the sidewalk; and, for a well-connected street network that provided alternative routes to reach destinations.Our findings suggest that traffic safety may have a major influence on older adults’ transportation cycling experiences and that the provision of a well-separated cycling space may be crucial in that context. Further research studies with larger, more-representative, samples and using quantitative methods are needed to examine the mechanisms proposed in our inductively-derived model.