Decision Support Framework for Cycling Investment Prioritization

Abstract

Considering the significant potential for environmental, economic, social and health benefits from cycling, transport planners around the world are considering a wide variety of strategies for its promotion. However, cycling investments still have to find their place in a coherent package among other policies. Different constraints often imply a need for prioritization in cycling project implementation. The need for prioritization list of proposed investments can be caused by different factors such as available budget, available time, and regulatory constraints. Evaluation of investments in cycling infrastructure is a field of study that still requires further development, as previous research has mostly focused on questions of what to build and where. Previously used cost-benefit methods have substantive and procedural limitations in dealing with non-commensurable effects, and dealing with multiple conflicting objectives stemming from different stakeholders. On the contrary, development of prioritization list is formulated here as a semi-structured decision problem, thus belonging to the group of multi-criteria analysis (MCA) methods. The MCA methodology implemented in this decision-support framework is based on Preference Ranking Organization Method for Enrichment Evaluations (PROMETHEE). The expert-based decision-support framework includes procedures for defining list of evaluation criteria and their weights, scoring of alternatives, and sensitivity analysis. Presented decision-support framework is applied on six bicycle sections of the EuroVelo route 8 through Montenegro. Results provide a list of prioritized infrastructural investments, as well as list of criteria with weights, and sensitivity analysis. Decision-support framework is discussed in the context of further professionalizing of cycling planning, as well as short-term and long-term structuration of organization learning in the transition country context. Finally, this development opens up directions for further contextualization of decision criteria, and greater consideration of user attitudes in cycling promotion.