Citation

Ragot-Court I, Rodon C, Van Elslande P, Zhuo J. Eur. Transp. Res. Rev. 2021; 13(1): e55.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, European Conference of Transport Research Institutes, Publisher Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1186/s12544-021-00508-z

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The current deployment of e-bikes in large cities all over the world raises new road safety problems. The shared features of e-bikes and other types of two-wheelers, notably in terms of size and maneuverability, can lead to common road safety issues and similar accident mechanisms. This paper outlines the value of a comparative approach that includes all kinds of two-wheelers, motorized or not: bicycles, e-bikes of both the bicycle type and the scooter type, LPG and gasoline scooters, and motorcycles. For this purpose, a new self-reported risky behavior inventory was developed and its validity tested among 400 two-wheeler users in Shanghai. China, where the spread of e-bikes and other two-wheelers took place several years ago, is a useful country to study to shed light on issues that are emerging in Europe.

RESULTS indicate highly satisfactory psychometric properties of the inventory with a single-factor 12-item structure (52.81% of variance explained, α = .93) and very satisfactory fit indexes. In terms of construct validity, the eta (η) correlation ratio indicates its significant relation with self-reported previous accidents and with several criterion related experience variables. Furthermore, a high correlation was noted between the inventory scores and the maximum speed of the participants' vehicles. Ultimately, the inventory will enable future research to characterize and explain risky riding behaviors by riders of e-bikes compared to riders of other two-wheelers in China and, with some slight adaptations, these results can be applied to the European context.

Language: en

Keywords

Bicycle; Comparative approach; E-bikes; Power two-wheelers; Risky riding behaviors; Self-reported inventory