Using a bike counter system to collect data about traffic intensity in Sint-Niklaas
About this good practice
Without counting systems we could not prove that the main bike lane we have is too narrow to address the existing travel demand placed upon it during peak hours. In Flanders, the Province is the authority that invests in the bike lanes and the counters that are placed on these lanes in 2022. At the moment they are prioritising investment in the missing links and not in existing lanes. By having the bike counter system we convinced the Province that investing in bike lane widening is vital to enhance the safety and comfort for over 500 cyclists/hour that cross the lane (the current width of the bike lane is 2m for both directions). The counters are installed permanently for data collection, and the counter also displays the number of cyclists recorded in the current year and the number cyclists recorded during the current day. We have seen that the presence of the counters themselves encourages bikers to take these roads. The data collected from the counter goes directly to an online dashboard. Until a year ago this data was only going to the dashboard of the company that installs the counter, now this data is implemented in a dashboard that combines all the data collected by bicycle counters across the whole of Flanders. Sint-Niklaas was the main stakeholder involved in the installation of the bike counter system and the data collection. The Province was responsible for decision-making (deciding on improving bike infrastructure), while the main beneficiaries are the cyclists.
Resources needed
One counter to install and have a yearly maintenance costs 15.000 euros
Evidence of success
We counted over 500 cyclists per hour on a daily basis during weekdays. The system offered the evidence that the Province needed for justifying the investment into the widening of the bike lane.
Potential for learning or transfer
Counting in mobility is always a plus, at any given moment. It was also a huge advantage that our neighbouring municipality wanted to work together for the improvement of the bike lane that residents of both municipalities depend on for their mobility. The involvement of the cyclists enhanced our vision of making this lane better from a users’ perspective.
The bikecounters are on many levels important to increase cycling. It creates a sort of community among the cyclists that use the specific lanes, knowing that you are not alone using this lanes give a form of connection. Datacollection is key in mobility. And in our case was the data useful to convince the Province to invest in Sint-Niklaas.