ABC zoning: an integrated approach to mobility planning

What is an integrated mobility strategy?

The mobility strategy is the step between public goals and concrete measures. It shows us the way the different networks form car, public transport and cycling interreact. Where are the relevant mobility hubs where the networks of public transport and cycling are coming together? How do we avoid that cyclists have to cross major urban boulevards for cars? How are new developments being served by every network? Knowing how you’re your city will look like, let us say 25 years from now, is crucial. 

 “The best cycle plan is a carplan” 

Since safety is a key-issue for the cycling plan the logical question is: how do you manage highly impactful conflicts with cars? This is all about the intensities of cars and managing the speeds of cars; it is by making a clear plan for the routing of cars in your network that you can free up space for more green, more walkers and more cyclists. In The Netherlands there is a decennia-long tradition of steering the cars to the highways in order to create more safety and more room for other users on the subordinated networks. 

In the Utrecht Mobility Plan the mobility strategy was aiming strongly for cars to use the Ringroad around the city in order to free up space for cyclists in the heart of the city. And the mobility strategy is not only about the routing of cars, but also about the strategic planning of parking places and traffic management. This all can help to create more space for other modes in the heart of the city.   

The urban environment communicates

We might not always notice it, but the urban environment communicates a message to the user: are you only tolerated as a cyclist? On a footpath? Or in between cars? With only a few paint stripes? Or are you invited? Is the space designed for your presence? You know what happens at a party if you are only tolerated: you don't stay too long and you don't come back. Actually, the behaviour of cyclists is exactly the same. 

So creating an inviting environment for pedestrians and cyclists provokes the kind of behaviour we are looking for. A place where they feel welcome. Where they are the most important user of the public space. And only by doing so we can have amazing effects on the behaviour,  like in this example in Utrecht: more than 50% more cyclists, 30% lesser cars and a 30% reduction of speeds only by creating an other environment. 

ABC-zoning: three levels of environment

So talking about environments we can make a separation in three levels of environment in the city:

1. The A-zone is where cyclists and pedestrians are the most important users of the public space;
2. In the urbanized B-zone there is an attractive balance and mix between the modes;
3. In the C-zone the different structures for cars, bicycles and public transport are separated.

A-zone: an inviting environment for cyclists

It all starts with the A-zone: every city has an A-zone or can create this zone. In European cities this is often the historical city. In American cities this can be the people-oriented environments of your city. In these zone we can apply some main principles:

• The quality of the public space is important. There for streetparking can be reduced.
• Walking and cycling are the most important users of the public space. Their facilities should be well designed.
• Cars are guests and only destination traffic to the nearest carparks is allowed.
• Public transit is concentrated on certain corridors and limited in speed.
• The intensity of car-traffic is lower than 5000 veh/ day. Speed is lower then 20 miles or 30 km/h. With these intensities no traffic lights are needed and no cycle paths are needed too.

B-zone: creating inviting corridors

The B-zone is the more dense urban area. In European cities this is often the pre-war-city on a cycle distance from the historic centre. In American cities this can be the more highly urbanized zones. In the B-zone it is important to:

• Create inviting cycling corridors, with spatial continuity, following historic routes, water or green: pleasant environments with low traffic.
• The principle of the cycle-street makes cyclists the most important user of the space and cars are only guests.
• No crossing of roads with higher intensity then 15.000 motorvehicles a day and crossing in two steps with an island in between and single lane per direction.
• Often these corridors can be combined with PT-corridors and on the corridors pleasant places can be created where the PT-stops are located and that add to the experience of cyclists too.

C-zone: separated cycling infrastructure

The C-zone is the less dense suburban area. In these environments we can only create inviting cycle corridors by seperating the cycle-infrastructure from the roadinfrastrucure:

• Cycling roads are mainly two-directional and intersections with mainroads and railways are uneven.
• The cycle-roads can make use of water, green historic corridors or parks to make them more attractive.

Attractiveness is most important for cyclists

We found out in an extensive research (Goudappel, 2019) that the shortest route in time is not an important factor in the choice of route for cyclists. But attractiveness of the route is: nearly 10 times more important. So when you create an inviting environment for bicycles following the ABC-principles you will not only target a larger group of users in the mobility-market: from 8 tot 80. 

You will also take care that your users are using the bicycle for longer tracks. Cause when they feel pleasant time is running faster and they will automatically cycle over longer distances. In this way the effectiveness of your policy is growing  quadratically as is the share of cycling in urban mobility. Levels up to 40% can be reached.