Quantifying the Negative Impact of Interactions Between Users of Pedestrians-Cyclists Shared Use Space

In recent years, many efforts are being made for the promotion of active modes of transport. Due to this reason, as well as due to the limited available public space, the co-existence of pedestrians and cyclists is a very common phenomenon, which requires extensive investigation. The design and implementation of pedestrians-cyclists shared use space is a widely used technical choice, when the road infrastructure is unsuitable for hosting cyclists and thus the separation of cyclists from the motorized traffic is considered advisable. However, the co-existence of pedestrians and cyclists is not always harmonious and the interactions between them can have a negative impact in their perceived comfort and safety. The present research aims to quantify this negative impact of the various kinds of interactions, by considering the users’ attitudes and by applying the Analytical Hierarchy Process method. The attitudes of users were captured through questionnaire surveys, that were directed to both pedestrians and cyclists in the city of Palermo, Italy. The results of the analysis are being compared with the results of a previous attempt to quantify the impact of interactions. Through this comparison, useful conclusions and notes for further research are deriving