Navegando por Autor "Mahecha Nuñez, Javier Yesid"

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    Cyclists\' physiological stress and network planning and evaluation
    (2018-12-05) Mahecha Nuñez, Javier Yesid
    Transportation planners need to assess users\' stress conditions on cycling infrastructures given that highly stressful situations can discourage the use of this sustainable transport mode. Not many studies have addressed the relationships between these environmental factors and users\' emotional responses in terms of objective measures of stress. The aim of this study is to explore a new approach for planning and evaluating cycling infrastructure, based on smart sensors. This new approach focuses on the perspective of monitoring parameters intrinsic to the user, such as emotions. In this perspective, the indicators of stress levels are made from directly measuring cyclists\' physiological responses throughout the journey. This approach makes use of technological resources to extract information from users through sensors and imparts this information in an integrated way to improve infrastructures for cyclists. The data were collected using stress and noise sensors, accelerometers embedded in a smartphone and a GPS. Initially, the problem is posed and we discuss how the design and evaluation of cycle paths has been addressed in the literature. The proposed approach identifies the most relevant contributions and research gaps, such as the lack of research based on objective criteria and research that involves designing and evaluating infrastructure scenarios shared with motor vehicles. In the sequence, an objective method for assessing bicycle infrastructures combining environmental assessment with vertical acceleration measurements was proposed in order to improving data collection and other procedures required for assessing the main components of cycling infrastructures. Subsequently, a tool to characterize traffic stress of cycling routes, called the Level of Traffic Stress (LTS), was validated with physiological measures in the urban context of a mediumsized Brazilian city. It was observed that there is no correlation and little agreement between the parameters. It is also emphasized that even when incorporating information about the traffic speed to the LTS tool, it was not significantly related to stress from the perspective of the cyclist. In the final analysis the influence of noise, vibration, cycle paths and period of day on stress experienced by cyclists was investigated. An analysis of the p-values and odds ratio confidence intervals shows, with a 95% confidence level, that only the period of the day influenced stress, as confirmed by the data. In this case, the chances of having stress increased by 24% in the afternoon rush hour compared to the morning rush hour. This study showed the feasibility of stress assessment in cyclists using an objective measurement method, as well as quick identification of critical levels of stress.