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Planning students undertake bike path study
University of the Sunshine Coast Planning students were up bright and early today (Wednesday 25 March) to survey commuters cycling along bike paths in the central Sunshine Coast area.
The research, supported by the Sunshine Coast Regional Council and Queensland Transport, will help identify how existing bicycle paths are used, bicyclists’ motivations for cycling, and what cyclists think about bicycle routes and facilities.
The compiled data will be used by the council and Queensland Transport to make decisions about forward planning and maintenance of bicycle facilities.
Students of USC’s Regional and Urban Planning (BRUP) degree conducted the survey as part of their course in Regional Infrastructure Planning.
Lecturer Dr Claudia Baldwin said the BRUP program aimed to give students practical real life experience, based on sound theory, to prepare them for shaping a more sustainable future for urban centres and regions.
“Survey sites were chosen because they are known cycle routes for commuting to work, school or uni, and offered a clear line of sight for cyclists,” she said.
Dr Baldwin said students observed and counted cyclists at key points on the bicycle network.
“They also stopped cyclists to ask brief questions about their origin and destination and to provide them with a more detailed survey, for them to complete in their own time, about facilities and motivations for cycling,” she said.
“Queensland Transport and the regional council have installed automated counters on these routes which will enable validation of the basic data.”
Dr Baldwin said the final report consolidating findings was expected to be available on the Sunshine Coast Regional Council website by June 2009.
— Terry Walsh