Problem statement

While there are established systems to survey and assess the condition of roads, only little information is available so far on the quality and condition of existing cycle tracks in the network outside built-up areas. A standardised condition survey and assessment has not yet been established in this field, although this very infrastructure can be especially attractive to cyclists commuting in the periphery between rural and urban areas as well as for leisure cycling and cycle tourism.

Project objective

Targeted measures to upgrade and maintain the existing cycling infrastructure require a valid and extensive set of data. To obtain this data, there is as yet no uniform survey and assessment system which is tailored to the needs of cycle traffic. With the automated survey and assessment procedure for cycle tracks outside built-up areas (aZuR) to be developed, all cycle tracks can be examined in a comparable manner in order to identify priorities for structural maintenance and a targeted use of the funds to improve and optimize the cycling infrastructure. The data from aZuR provides a good basis for bicycle type-specific routing.

Implementation

Within the scope of the aZuR project, requirements are compiled for a condition survey and assessment specifically tailored to the needs of cycling in order to derive the criteria to be collected. Information on the condition, design and surroundings of selected cycle tracks outside of built-up areas is collected by a survey vehicle with LiDAR (three-dimensional laser scanning) and cameras. An automated assessment procedure and a new assessment scheme for different bicycle types are then developed on the basis of this data.

Beneficiary	RheinMain University of Applied Sciences, Wiesbaden campus Funding code: 19F2230A
Project volume (at the time of approval)	494,067 euros (79.82% of which are funded by the BMDV)
Project duration (at the time of approval)	11/2022 – 10/2024
Project partners	XenomatiX, Leuven Funding code: 19F2230B Ostfalia University of Applied Sciences, Salzgitter campus Funding code: 19F2230C Lübeck Technical University Funding code: 19F2230D
Ansprechpartner	RheinMain University of Applied Sciences +49 (0)611-9495-1950 martina.lohmeier@hs-rm.de