European Union Smart Mobility–Aspects Connected with Bike Road System’s Extension and Dissemination

Abstract

The analysis of scientific research described in peer-reviewed journals demonstrates the significance of bicycle road networks in relation to smart mobility. This research was conducted for European Union cities that meet the criteria of having a developed bicycle route network and are ranked among the top 100 European bicycle-friendliest cities in 2021. The study also analyzed whether each city was on national or international lists of smart cities or had smart city initiatives. The study indicates that a comprehensive and well-developed network of bicycle paths is a crucial element in the development of smart mobility solutions within a modern smart city. Among EU countries, cities in northern and central Europe, particularly in Germany, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, and the Netherlands, have the best-developed bicycle networks. The research on the correlation between the average temperature level in a country and the average values for smart city bike lanes showed a statistically significant negative correlation between the two variables. The lower a country’s average annual temperature, the more that a bicycle infrastructure is present in its smart cities, as measured by the length of bicycle paths and the saturation of the city with bicycle paths per square kilometer and per 1000 residents. After removing outliers (Finland, Ireland, and Luxembourg), a significant relationship was observed between the wealth of a country and the length and density of bicycle paths in smart cities. The linear correlation coefficient between the length of bicycle roads and GDP per capita was found to be −0.73, which is a high coefficient value.