Cardiff Cycling Campaign
Report of a Cycle Count
26th July 2012
at the junction of Duke Street – Kingsway – Queen Street – St John Street
Survey aim:
To survey this key junction, in order to generate hard evidence of the demand for better cycling facilities, by:
o Counting overall cycle traffic flows
o Identifying the key routes used by cyclists
o Focusing attention on movement conflicts between cyclists and motor vehicles, and between cyclists and pedestrians
o Identifying cyclists’ gender and whether they use a helmet
o Comparing the survey results with those of previous years
Date: Thursday, 26th July 2012.
Conditions: The weather was warm / hot and sunny, with a light to south easterly wind. Temperature about 18C at 07.30am, rising to about 27C.
There was moderate bus and commercial traffic during the morning peak travel period 08.00 - 09.00 and, over the evening period, 16.30 – 17.30. The streets were gradually closed to traffic around 17.45, as crowds gathered for evening’s Olympic football match in the Millennium Stadium. The thorough routes, including Duke Street – Kingsway, remained open to cycists until the end of the survey period. Use of the cycle racks adjacent to the junction in Queen Street rose from 5 to 10 in the morning, maintained at 34 bikes during the afternoon recorded period.
Surveyor: Ken Barker
Number of cyclists per 15 minutes *
07.30 – 09.30
16.15 – 18.15
Bicycle flows
During the day, bicycle flows were high throughout the morning commuter period, and greatest between 08.00 and 08.45, and during the evening period from 17.00 to 18.00 but there was scarcely a tailing off of numbers. There is no clear ‘commuting period’: journeys are varied in direction and flow during settled weather.
The main directions of travel changed during the course of the day:
Movement directions (number of cycle movements + %)
07.30 – 09.30
From (inward): To (outward):
Duke Street 120 36% Duke Street 71 21%
Kingsway 120 36% Kingsway 72 22%
Queen Street 45 14% Queen Street 110 33%
St John Street 47 14% St John Street 79 24%
16.25 – 18.25
To (outward): From (outward):
Duke Street 142 36% Duke Street 130 33%
Queen Street 84 21% Queen Street 93 24%
Kingsway 112 29% Kingsway 112 29%
St John Street 52 14% St John Street 55 14%
Overall (4 hours)
To (outward): From (outward):
Duke Street 213 29½% Duke Street 250 35%
Queen Street 194 27% Queen Street 138 19%
Kingsway 184 25½% Kingsway 232 32%
St John Street 131 18% St John Street 102 14%
Use of footpaths and pedestrianised area:
Queen Street and St John Street are pedestrianised, but are consistently used by cyclists as part of the route network, majority not dismounting.
A high % of cyclists used the footpaths in Duke Street & Kingsway, for the 2 x 2 hour periods: 53% : 48%, overall: 50%, an increase in both morning and evening periods compared with the September 2011 count.
· The main route for negotiating the directions between Duke Street & Queen Street and from St John Street to Kingsway is through the central pedestrian refuge and light-controlled pedestrian crossings;
· Many cyclists use the pavement between Kingsway / Greyfriars Road and Queen Street & the pedestrianised central area.
Helmet wearers: 40% of cyclists were observed wearing cycle helmets in the morning period (32% in May 2012), and 27% in the evening period (21% in May 2012; 28% in September 2011), an overall percentage of 33% (27% in May 2012; 30% in September 2011). There were 107 helmet wearers out of 226 cyclists on the Kingsway – Duke Street route, or 47%, an increase in helmet use from 38% previously.
Gender of cyclists: 78 % [563] male cyclists; 22 % [159] female cyclists in the evening period, there a small increase in the percentage of women cyclists compared to that of May 2012, at 24%, whilst the morning count percentage was maintained.
Comparison with previous survey counts:
07.30 – 09.30
July May Sept May June
From (inward): 2012 % 2012 % 2011 % 2011 % 2010 %
Duke Street 120 36 134 38 83 28 77 33 72 28
Kingsway 120 36 112 32 112 38 78 33 89 35
Queen Street 45 14 50 14 47 16 34 14 44 17
St John Street 47 14 59 16 54 18 46 20 49 19
332 355 296 235 254
16.30 - 18.30 / 16.15 – 18.15
July May Sept May June
To (outward): 2012 % 2012 % 2011 % 2011 % 2010 %
Duke Street 142 36 149 38 113 32 96 32 90 31
Queen Street 84 21 83 21 73 20 68 23 60 21
Kingsway 112 29 102 26 88 25 89 29 75 26
St John Street 52 14 61 16 83 23 47 16 67 23 390 395 357 300 292
722 750 653 535 546
Conclusion
The total number of cyclists in the 4-hour period, 722, was less than the 750 counted in May 2012, was again encouraged by a week of hot settled weather after a previously cool and wet two months and by the extended period of daylight.
It is difficult to assess the effects of the road closure, and crowded pedestrian areas, on numbers counted in the afternoon. Cyclists could afford to cycle in a more relaxed manner in the absence of vehicles, and to take their time, and many cyclists were observed walking their bikes and chatting with friends. Pedestrian flows in the afternoon were exceptionally high at this city centre junction.
Most cyclists responded appropriately to the high pedestrian flows but there remain issues of street furniture being obstacles at this junction, reducing available space for cyclists to manoeuvre round delivery vehicles (in the morning) and pedestrians (In the afternoon).
The experimental relaxation of cycling prohibition during the morning period (overall prohibition 10am to 4pm) ceased in August 2009. There is no deterrent effect from the re-imposed prohibition of cycling in the morning period in Queen Street; a “de facto” allowance of cycling through all pedestrianised areas.
Following completion of the street works in the High Street and St. Mary Street, there continues to be deterrence of north-bound cycling and the absence of a crossing provision out of the High Street; having noted that, high pedestrian flows in St. John Street also act again the selection of this route.
Potential restrictions on cycling throughout the vehicle-restricted areas in future would have a significant effect however.
Ken Barker
Surveyor
July 2012
1