Relationships between neighbourhood environments and residents' bicycle mode choice: a case study of Seoul

The purpose of this study is to analyse the characteristics of neighbourhood environments affecting residents' bicycle mode choice through a case study of Seoul. In this study, neighbourhood environments and other socio-demographic factors were used as explanatory variables in a causal model. The main data source used for this research was the 2006 Household Travel Survey, from which 214,978 observations were selected as the final sample. Statistical analysis was carried out by applying the random intercept logit model. The results of analysing the factors that affect the residents' bicycle mode choice can be summarized as follows: first, the gender, income, occupation, vehicle ownership status, and residential type have statistically significant correlations with the bicycle mode choice. In addition, the travel time and travel distance affect the bicycle mode choice. Second, a high level of land use mix results in more bicycle travel. However, unlike what is shown in previous western studies, residential density does not have a significant correlation with bicycle travel. Third, the density of bicycle lanes has an effect on the bicycle mode choice, which shows that accessibility to bicycle lanes is an important planning factor in activating bike travel. Fourth, gradients are one of the important factors that affect the bicycle mode choice because residents use bicycles less in regions with steep slopes. Fifth, analysing the destination, like the origin, the land use mix, and bicycle lane density, was found to affect the bicycle mode choice.