Perceived usefulness of cycling safety countermeasures in Australia and New Zealand: do stigma, stress and self-reported behaviours play a role?

Increasing modal share for cycling has many potential benefits for individuals and communities, especially in regions dominated by motor vehicle use and affected by issues such as extreme congestion. However, research suggests that cycling is not always a safe and positive experience, especially in car-centric communities that could benefit most from increasing cycling rates. Effective countermeasures can mitigate many issues that deter cycling, but their impact also depends on how useful they are perceived to be by riders. Therefore, the aim of this study was to understand the experiences of cyclists in terms of whether these are positive or negative and what factors underly these experiences (i.e. frequency of conflict with other road users, perceived stigma, cyclist behaviour) as well as to explore the perceived usefulness associated with a range of countermeasures considering safer behaviour, safer infrastructure, smarter cycles and more enforcement. Participants were 2135 cyclists living in Australia (n = 1239; average age 53.6; SD = 13.0; men = 74 %) and New Zealand (n = 896; average age = 46.8; SD = 14.6; men = 59 %) who completed an online questionnaire. Riders had mostly positive experiences with cycling, however 87 % felt there was a stigma towards cyclists and almost all riders (99 %) had experienced conflict with car drivers. These factors were associated with less positive perceptions of cycling. Understandably, almost all cyclists held positive views towards separated infrastructure countermeasures. Education campaigns for drivers were also seen as useful. Moreover, binary logistic regression analyses showed that across a range of countermeasures, cyclists who reported more positive experiences and more protective behaviours, yet also reported more conflict with other road users, tended to endorse infrastructure countermeasures. These cyclists may be more aware of safety concerns, adapt accordingly, and want to keep cycling. Riders perceiving stigma towards cyclists tended to support broader system-level changes; such as education and enforcement for drivers. Thus, a systems-level approach may be required to improve safety and positive riding experiences across a range of cyclists.