The Construction of Non-Motorized Transportation Network Based on Residents' Preference in Urban Central Area

Abstract

To deal with the serious impact on urban traffic, society, ecological environment and energy system by the aggregated motorization in cities, both China and foreign countries have gradually come up with a series of policies and initiatives targeting at the non-motorized traffic by cyclists and pedestrians. Under such a background, the research studies four sub-districts of Tuanjie hu, Hujialou, Liulitun and Balizhuang at the central area of Chaoyang District, Beijing, and tries to find the interrelation between the preferences of non-motorized agents in densely populated urban central area and the construction of non-motorized transportation network. By discussing the non-motorized travel routes, road patterns and facility layout according to various needs of the target group, the research aims to deal with the construction of non-motorized transportation system in the densely populated central area in Beijing. Through questionnaire and interview, the research conducts an in-depth survey on residents travel purposes, behavioral regularities and users assessment for the current non-motorized routes, and acquires an understanding about their preferences on choice of roads due to different travel purposes, problems from using current non-motorized routes and thereby their preferred road patterns, and the preferred facility layout that meet local residents behavioral regularities. By simulating the optimization of two types of non-motorized routes for commute and recreation with the Cost Distance Module, the research constructs three types of non-motorized routes: comprehensive, commute and recreation, with a total length of 65.8km. The research also reconstructs the road patterns for urban expressway, major arterial, minor arterial and connector on the road section for commute and recreation, adding green belts and low road fence to segment non-motorized routes. Meanwhile, the research establishes a three-tier NMT facility service center system which incorporates bicycle service (ranging from bike renting, parking and maintenance to vehicle shift), NMT signs, informational signs, vendor booths, public bathrooms, benches, and trash bins. Thus an integral non-motorized traffic network at the urban central area of Beijing is built up.