Increasing the share of active and micromobility (AMM) is considered crucial for the defossilization of the transportation sector and for driving transformative change towards a more sustainable mobility system. However, reducing obstacles or providing services alone is insufficient if an adequate level of user comfort for AMM is not achieved. It is essential to understand the underlying factors of user comfort (e.g., accessibility, quality of infrastructure, time savings) that effectively influence the choice of transport mode. This project analyzes the user comfort factors that affect the decision to use or avoid AMM and develops an implementation approach to incorporate these factors into planning practices to increase the share of AMM.

The project employs a mixed-method approach: In the first part, we collect data on AMM usage and the underlying comfort factors through a representative Switzerland-wide online survey. These results are then further explored using a public participation GIS survey to identify comfort factors at georeferenced points and along specific road sections. Additionally, we will conduct quantitative GIS surveys, as well as interviews and workshops. The goal is to develop a standardized procedure with recommendations to assist spatial and transportation planning authorities in achieving higher levels of user comfort for AMM, thereby increasing its share.

Despite the decreasing number of accidents, some road users—especially vulnerable individuals such as cyclists and pedestrians—still feel subjectively unsafe on the roads. Subjective road safety refers to how people perceive and assess certain situations on the roads. This perception is a crucial factor influencing the choice of cycling (and active mobility in general) as a mode of transport, and thus plays a significant role in promoting sustainable mobility. Moreover, low subjective road safety can lead to certain places being avoided or used with heightened caution. Avoiding these situations or paying more attention results in fewer accidents, making these situations objectively safer.

In current road safety practice in Switzerland, subjective safety has not yet been integrated, and consequently, aspects of subjective safety are rarely systematically included in practice. Based on the current state of knowledge, this does not provide a comprehensive view of road safety. Therefore, this research project aims to develop a methodology for measuring and evaluating the subjective perception of road safety among different road users and to integrate subjective safety into road safety practice.

The project will utilize a literature review, a public participation GIS survey to identify geo-localized hotspots of perceived (un)safety, and a representative Switzerland-wide survey on perceived road safety to determine which situations are assessed as subjectively unsafe or safe by different road users. This assessment will then be validated through field tests with physiological stress measurements. From these findings, measures that can make road spaces subjectively safe for different road users will be derived. The ultimate goal is to develop a methodology for integrating subjective road safety into Swiss infrastructure safety instruments