BITS partners discuss about European cycling data
In the EU funded project BITS (Bicycles and Intelligent Transport Systems) the fifth internal project meeting (Steering Group Meeting) took place at the end of September. The department of Business Informatics VLBA presented the latest findings of the analysis of European bicycle traffic data. During the presentation, VLBA research associate Johannes Schering discussed the effects of the Corona Virus on bicycle use in the North Sea region. Due to the Corona Pandemic the meeting took place completely online.
The evaluation of data from bicycle counting stations and sensors showed that the share of leisure time trips and bicycle tours seems to have increased. With the Corona Lockdown in the spring time, the total number of trips in the Netherlands decreased, but the travel distances significantly increased. In addition, bicycles are used relatively more frequently at weekends. The topics of traffic safety at intersections and bicycle parking were also discussed. Initial data sets from the project, which is funded by the Interreg program, are to be made freely available as Open Data in the coming working steps.
The student project group Bicycle Data, which works intensively with European cycling data of the BITS project, was also presented at the digital project meeting. The master students were thus able to gain valuable experience in the international project environment. The next BITS project meeting is expected to take place from 2nd- 4th of March 2021 physically in Oldenburg or in an online format.