Recently a lot of international research has been done in order to promote cycling. In order to understand why some choose the bike instead of the car it is essential to attain knowledge on which conditions and parameters cause people to choose or not to choose the bicycle as a means of transportation. In the EU project ADONIS (with the aim to suggest means by which short car journeys could be substituted by cycling or walking), it was found that the number of trips made by cycle varies a great deal from country to country. By use of interviews and the Planned Behaviour Theory, it was, inter alia, found that habit is the most important predictor of biking, and that choosing the car on the first journey determines travel modes for the rest of the day, regardless of the distance travelled. In order to make people use the bike instead of the car, the report concludes that it is important to develop a road infrastructure which gives higher priority to cyclists, an improved traffic safety for cyclists and easy access to bicycles. Similar results were found in a Danish study "The Potential of the Bicycle in Urban Areas". The conclusions in both studies are that it is very important to make comprehensive cycle planning an integrated part of a total local plan for traffic.
Abstract