LAUSR

Abstract There is a growing effort on policies and projects to support a modal shift towards active transport modes, namely the bicycle. The selection of preferred routes, and consequently the implementation of cycle routes, are usually based on distance, time and safety, not on exposure to pollutants. This paper presents a methodology to compare alternative routes, considering not only journey distance and time but also cyclist effort and exposure to pollutants mainly from traffic emissions (that also relates to the cyclist effort). The main purpose of this work is to develop a simple tool that allows municipalities and end users to estimate the effort required and the exposure to pollutants on potential routes, therefore supporting planning and design of infrastructure. The concept of cyclist specific effort (CSE) is developed in this work. The cyclist's highest specific ventilation rates are estimated from a direct relationship with the CSE, based on the specific characteristics of the users and on a calibrated relationship in the lab. A case study is presented for the route that connects two campuses of the University of Coimbra, Portugal (≈5 km). Results show that some alternative routes, which are generally not considered due to the increment of distance and/or time, can significantly reduce exposure to pollutants while requiring the same or even less effort. A reduction of approximately one third in the inhalation of pollutants from traffic emissions (33.1%) is possible by choosing a slightly longer route (6%) and requires a similar total effort.