Communicating data to promote walking and cycling

Communication: an essential pillar for developing active transportation

Walking and cycling are such everyday activities that they are often overlooked. Measuring traffic from pedestrians, cyclists, scooters, and other active modes often reveals surprising volumes of traffic.

Public communication of count data plays a crucial role in making active transportation popular. For example, a great strategy to inspire behavior change in citizens is to show them how many others in their community are walking or biking. Similarly, showing off count data creates public support for active transportation projects by demonstrating their real-world impacts.

Count data adds value to communication with simple, effective, and impactful figures. All over the world, our Eco-DISPLAY counters provide a fun way of showing citizens statistics like pedestrians and cyclists this year, current date, time, temperature, and even CO2 saved!

In Greenville, South Carolina, their Eco-DISPLAY Classic+ shows a live count of pedestrians and cyclists on one of their multi-use trails (shown right).

As another example, Montpellier in France installed multiple Eco-DISPLAY Classic+ displays showing the number of bike counts and the total CO2 saved from bike trips. An excellent way of communicating the environmental benefits of cycling!

Sharing spikes in pedestrian or bicycle volumes following an event or bike tour is a great way to tell a story.

In San Diego County, Bike Anywhere Day is an annual event that encourages as many people as possible to replace their car journeys - to work, school, the grocery store, etc. - with bicycle trips for a day.

In 2024, Bike Anywhere Day saw a 40% increase in ridership in the region compared to days similar days throughout the year. This storytelling was great promotion for their event and can be used to get more people to participate next year.

Communicating on count data can be done through physical tools like displays, but it can also be done using digital tools.

Our data analysis software, Eco-Visio, lets you analyze count data with charts and share them on social media in just a few clicks.

Similarly, our Public Web Page enables you to share count data in real time on a webpage you control. On the page, visitors will find an interactive map with counter locations, count data, photos, and more. Check out an example of the Public Web Page of the City of Baltimore.

Finally, to maximize your data's usage and communication, our API ^Evo can integrate your count data with any other site or application.

Case study: Montreal, Canada

A prime example data communication having an impact is the redevelopment Saint Denis Street in Montreal, Canada. As part of the city's new bike plan, the major arterial was completely redesigned. Before the change, there was no bike lane on the street and cars took up 70% of the space.

After the change, the city added a protected bike lane that took up 15% of the space, increased the pedestrian and green space allocation to 55%, and left 30% for cars. Of course, people were skeptical of the change. But, the City of Montreal's display counter and public bike data showed massive increases in cyclists year after year, improving traffic flow and prompting people to get on board with the project!