The ecology of urban driving I -- methodology

Driving patterns influence and are influenced by land use patterns and other transport features. Traffic research, particularly driving cycle development has mainly focused on the pure engineering aspects of driving patterns to the neglect of this broader perspective. Consequently the interpretation of results and policy development on urban energy conservation and emissions abatement arising from driving cycle research have been seriously questioned. This study shows how it is possible to closely link instrumented vehicle research to an understanding of the wider urban system, i.e. the ecology of urban driving. To do this a methodology of sampling driving patterns in an urban area is developed and applied to Perth, Western Australia. This defines homogeneous areas within the city in terms of their activity intensity, modal split and social/economic status. The six areas developed provide not only a framework for sampling driving patterns but a way of demonstrating the urban ecological basis of driving patterns.