Cycling-friendly cities require favorable perceptions of streetscapes in China: the evidence in magnifying the benefits of accessibility and land use mix (Preprint)

Abstract

Background: Cycling is known to be beneficial for human health. Studies have suggested significant associations of physical activity with macroscale built environment and microscale streetscapes. However, it remains unknown whether good streetscapes can amplify the benefits of favourable built environment. Methods: This study examines the moderation roles of streetscape perceptions on the effects of land use mix and accessibility on cycling, using data from18,019,266 bike-sharing orders during weekends in Shanghai, China. Street-view images and a human–machine adversarial scoring system, was combined to evaluate lively, safety and wealthy perceptions. Results: Negative Binomial Regression results showed that there were significant interactions of the land use Herfindahl–Hirschman index with each of the lively and safety streetscape perceptions, while lively perception also positively moderated the effect of road intersection density on the number of bike-sharing. Moreover, lively perception emerged as the most influential moderator among the three perceptual indicators, which is different from the findings of Western studies. The findings are robust in the three sensitivity analyses. Conclusions: A safer and livelier streetscape can enhance the benefits of land use mix in promoting cycling, with the former also intensifying the effect of accessibility. The findings have dual implications. To better promote cycling, it is key to conduct interventions on streetscape perceptions, which can indirectly affect physical activity by enhancing the benefits of accessibility and land use mix. As a complement of built environment at macroscale, streetscape interventions are usually more timely and feasible than interventions targeting urban form.