The National Cycling Participation Survey (NCPS) is a standardised survey that has been repeated biennially since March/April 2011. The NCPS provides data on cycling participation at a national level and allows for estimates of participation for each state and territory, and the capital cities and noncapital areas within each state and territory. The primary survey objective is to obtain accurate data on cycling participation to monitor performance towards the National Cycling Strategy 2011-16 target of doubling cycling participation. The objective is to measure participation rather than travel. Participation is defined as the number of individuals who have cycled for any journey or purpose and in any location over a specified time period. By comparison, travel is the number of cycling trips that occurred over that time period, and may include the distance travelled, purpose and so on. Participation is much easier to define, and for individuals to recall, than travel. It is reasonable to expect an individual would remember whether they had ridden a bicycle over the past week, month or year, but far less likely they would be able to accurately recall the number of trips they have made over that period. Further details on the method and results used in NCPS are reported in detail elsewhere. The survey is a telephone-based survey of residents of the study area, and includes coverage of mobile-only households. As cycling participation is greatest among children, it is critical that the survey have coverage of this group. Data on cycling participation of those aged under 15 is obtained by asking an adult in the household to report on behalf of other household members, including children. The survey suggests that 14.0% (95% CI: 11.8% - 16.2%) of South Australian residents ride a bicycle in a typical week. Just under one third (30.9%, 95% CI: 28.0% - 33.8%) had done so in the past year. (Author/publisher)
Abstract