Citation

Kwiatkowski MA. Case Stud. Transp. Policy 2021; 9(2): 663-673.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, World Conference on Transport Research Society, Publisher Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.cstp.2021.03.004

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Public transport is increasingly addressing the problems of congestion in large urban agglomerations and transport exclusion of peripheral areas. To improve the quality of connections between smaller towns and the central city of the region, local authorities, in consultation with the local railway company, have launched the first voivodeship bike-sharing system in Poland, covering ten cities and towns in the Łódź region. The aim of that project was to increase transport cohesion in the Łódź agglomeration. The article analyses the expectations of the project participants - small and medium-sized towns, areas in danger of transport exclusion, and towns with less-developed cycling policy. The study has shown that the voivodeship bicycle-sharing system can bring numerous benefits, especially for small and medium-sized towns of the region, by not only boosting transport accessibility in their area, but also improving the quality of life of the inhabitants, the image and innovativeness of the town, and deepening cooperation between local governments participating in the project. However, the conducted research has proven that at the present stage the analysed voivodship public bicycle system does not ensure full cohesion of the region due to the small number of stations and bicycles in the central city, resulting from the fact that it already has a separate urban bicycle-sharing system.

Language: en

Keywords

Bicycle; Bike-and-ride; Bike-sharing; Bike-train-bike; Cycling policy; Łódź; Small and medium-sized towns; Sustainable transport; Transport exclusion