The Alan M. Voorhees Transportation Center undertook an effort to benchmark the current state of travel by a unique set of travelers, transit riders who travel to stations by bicycle. Understanding the needs of current bicyclists and addressing the barriers that prevent potential bicyclists from accessing stations in the state’s expansive network can augment the use of bicycles, and at the same time, increase rail ridership.
To fill this knowledge gap, VTC collected data to document the current levels of travel by bicyclists to rail transit stations during commuting hours, to learn about the conditions they encounter along their trips and at stations, to understand their motivations in choosing this means of access to stations, and to learn in more detail the travel behaviors of those who make these kinds of journeys and of their travel more generally.
VTC conducted several data collection activities:
- Counts at 35 stations of bicyclists who ride to station for the purpose of boarding trains;
- Inventories of 214 stations and the approaching roadways to document conditions experienced by bicyclists traveling to stations;
- A focus group with bicyclists who travel to rail stations to learn first-hand about their experiences; and
- A survey of bicyclists who travel to stations. Together, these activities benchmark the current state of rail commuters who access stations by bicycle and provide a resource for the evaluation of future conditions.
Read full report: Bicycling to Rail Stations in NJ: 2013 Benchmarking Report (2014)
