# Request for help with an MSc dissertation!



## Cycle Michael (31 Jan 2011)

Hi everyone, I'm knew to this site and after some advice.

I'm looking for ideas on what to do my MSc dissertation on. The course is Transport Planning, and I want to focus on cycling but I can't come up with the exact subject or question for the title. I was thinking something like does the attitude of car drivers towards cyclists depend on if they cycle themselves, or answering why people choose to cycle, if it has gone up over the years, or what the council could do/are doing in certain areas and how it has an impact. Even attempting a cost / benefit analysis somehow.

Anyway, I'm just after ideas for now. Hopefully I'll get some inspiration from here!

Thanks!


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## summerdays (31 Jan 2011)

I take it you cycle yourself? Are you in an area with a lot of cycling or not?


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## Cycle Michael (31 Jan 2011)

summerdays said:


> I take it you cycle yourself? Are you in an area with a lot of cycling or not?




Yeah I cycle quite a lot and work for a Local Authority in the traffic and transport department, so I have access to all the proposed plans and previous cycle infrastructure work that has been done, but I’m a bit stuck on how to use the info I’ve got available. I’m also in the cycle forum, so I have contacts in all the cycling clubs etc and I know I could get more data from these sources as well.


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## dellzeqq (31 Jan 2011)

I think that cycling in and of itself is a pretty thin subject for a Masters degree. Why not go for something along the lines of town centres/ prosperity (expressed as footfall or rent)/ transport modes?


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## Manonabike (31 Jan 2011)

Not sure from what angle you want to look at this topic..... how about looking at changing the law so that cyclists are protected in a similar way as they are in other countries in Europe.... and the impact that might have on motorists and transport planing.


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## downfader (31 Jan 2011)

Manonabike said:


> Not sure from what angle you want to look at this topic..... how about looking at changing the law so that cyclists are protected in a similar way as they are in other countries in Europe.... and the impact that might have on motorists and transport planing.




I think thats more of a justice concern than planning.


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## Cycle Michael (31 Jan 2011)

dellzeqq said:


> I think that cycling in and of itself is a pretty thin subject for a Masters degree. Why not go for something along the lines of town centres/ prosperity (expressed as footfall or rent)/ transport modes?



I could do, but again it's getting an exact title nailed down. I've already failed it once and given my contacts in cycling I was hoping it would be an 'easy' option.

I'm now thinking about something like demographic of cyclists and where they cycle/how often etc and how this could be changed.

Been scratching my head for ages on this one.


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## Cycle Michael (31 Jan 2011)

Manonabike said:


> Not sure from what angle you want to look at this topic..... how about looking at changing the law so that cyclists are protected in a similar way as they are in other countries in Europe.... and the impact that might have on motorists and transport planing.



Cheers, I could do some sort of accident analysis, hadn't thought of that...as I have all the accident data as well.


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## jonesy (31 Jan 2011)

Cycle Michael said:


> I could do, but again it's getting an exact title nailed down. I've already failed it once and given my contacts in cycling I was hoping it would be an 'easy' option.
> 
> *I'm now thinking about something like demographic of cyclists and where they cycle/how often etc and how this could be changed.*
> 
> Been scratching my head for ages on this one.



Actually this is an interesting topic on which there is existing work but more could usefully done. If you look at the rather long London Assembly... thread you'll find a lot of discussion on what sort of trip distances can realistically be targeted for modal shift to cycling. The distances keen cyclists are prepared to ride aren't representative of the sort of trips 'normal' people are willing to ride, especially if in competition with driving and if the trip is to be done in normal clothes and without a shower or change at the destination. So, I think it would be very interesting to obtain some original data on travel distances and whether a change of clothes is involved for a representative range of cycle commuters, ideally somewhere with a high level of cycling. 

I'm also interested in travel times (which people might be able to report more accurately anyway), not least because journey time is a crucial factor in determining the competitiveness of cycling in comparison with other modes, driving in particular. I doubt you will ever get a large number of people cycling for trips where this requires a large time penalty in comparison with other options, but it would be very interesting to get some good comparative data on that. 

If you were to do something like this for a project you'd have plenty of literature to review and should be able to obtain some good research data of your own, using an appropriate survey method. And the results would definitely be of interest to the wider cycle planning world, because a better understanding of what sort of trips are most amenable to modal shift would be very helpful in ensuring resources are targeted effectively.

Edit- more useful links in this topic:
https://www.cyclechat.net/


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## Manonabike (31 Jan 2011)

downfader said:


> I think thats more of a justice concern than planning.



Well, I thought it like this:

Change the law --> motorists have to be more careful with cyclists --> cyclists feel more protected --> more cyclists on the road --> less need for public/private transport but also more facilities for cyclists in public transport ie trains = must have an impact in transport planning

He doesn't really have to say much about the legal side, he can just speculate as to what might happen if the law was changed.


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## Cycle Michael (2 Feb 2011)

jonesy said:


> Actually this is an interesting topic on which there is existing work but more could usefully done. If you look at the rather long London Assembly... thread you'll find a lot of discussion on what sort of trip distances can realistically be targeted for modal shift to cycling. The distances keen cyclists are prepared to ride aren't representative of the sort of trips 'normal' people are willing to ride, especially if in competition with driving and if the trip is to be done in normal clothes and without a shower or change at the destination. So, I think it would be very interesting to obtain some original data on travel distances and whether a change of clothes is involved for a representative range of cycle commuters, ideally somewhere with a high level of cycling.
> 
> I'm also interested in travel times (which people might be able to report more accurately anyway), not least because journey time is a crucial factor in determining the competitiveness of cycling in comparison with other modes, driving in particular. I doubt you will ever get a large number of people cycling for trips where this requires a large time penalty in comparison with other options, but it would be very interesting to get some good comparative data on that.
> 
> ...



Thanks for this it sounds encouraging, especially as there is literature out there and the surveys shouldn't be too difficult. I'll check that thread out then, thanks for thr links.


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## byegad (4 Feb 2011)

There's a lot of scope for investigating the mindset of planners when they provide useless cycle facilities, but maybe not for an MSc. (I know they think they are 'providing' something bless their little hearts. Sadly, all too often, it's worse than leaving well alone.)


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## Lurker (6 Feb 2011)

How about looking at an early cohort of the TfL-funded London community cycling projects, doing a quick follow-up to see what impacts these have had x years on, and using that data to try to identify the factors for success and the factors for lack of success (measured in terms of impact - you'd need a range of indicators for this). Assuming you can get the data and access to people involved - need to check this first obviously - a project on these lines would yield interesting and potentially very useful results, whatever the outcomes of the projects themselves.


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## Cycle Michael (16 Feb 2011)

I'm still thinking and have come up with this idea, would like some feedback if possible:

What about the duration that shoppers stay in town centres and how it varies with the mode by which they arrived?

I should say the dissertation doesn't just have to be cyclists, so any other transport ideas would be useful as well.


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## summerdays (16 Feb 2011)

Cycle Michael said:


> What about the duration that shoppers stay in town centres and how it varies with the mode by which they arrived?
> 
> I should say the dissertation doesn't just have to be cyclists, so any other transport ideas would be useful as well.



I think you would find that those that arrived by bike stayed the shortest length of time. With the bike I can graze along a shopping street ... moving my bike but I am limited by having only the panniers to fill and having to carry them when off the bike. Whereas if I go by car, I can return to the car with my purchases to unload and then go back for another spree.

I often wish they provided some kind of lockers for things like helmet, wet weather gear and heavy panniers etc that I remove when I get to the shops.


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## lowerstill (17 Feb 2011)

Was your dissertation anything to do with this? If not does it help?

CTC is offering bursaries for MA/MSc candidatespreparing dissertations on issues related to cycling. The deadline for receiptof applications is the 21 February. Previous topics of research include onewhich showed that drivers gave cyclists more space when no cycle lane waspresent. "

http://www.ctc.org.uk/DesktopDefault.aspx?TabID=5457


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## CycleFun30 (23 Feb 2011)

I read an interesting book, you might find it useful:

Nicholas Low, Brendan Gleeson; Making Urban Transport Sustainable, Palgrave Macmillan, 2003


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## porteous (24 Feb 2011)

How can road design contribute to reducing friction between disparate groups of road users while promoting energy saving modes of transport


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