Desempenho de corredores exclusivos de ônibus compartilhados com bicicletas: estudo de avenidas em Natal

Abstract

The implementation of shared exclusive bus-bike lanes consists in a mobility mechanism that aims to prioritize and encourage the use of both these transport modes as an alternative to private vehicles and increase the mobility inside urban centers. Considering that this transportation technology has been broadly implemented, this paper’s objective is to analyze the performance of these lanes, concerning the benefits they cause to the cyclists, to the operational conditions of the public transportation and to the general urban traffic flow. The methodology applied in this work begins with a bibliographic review about the subject and it progresses to crossing the theoretical referential with the field efficiency evaluations of the exclusive bus-bike lanes. The performed analysis made possible to conclude that the existence of these lanes allows, whether on a smaller or larger scale, an improved operational speed and bus traffic flow. Relatively to the bike users, the existence of a delimited space for this type of transport alone really provides more safety to the cyclists, but the massive use of bikes is limited by other factors such as users’ comfort and inclement weather exposition. Besides, it was also possible to infer that higher frequencies of bus and bike flows are related to inferior occurrence of invasions of the preferential corridors by private vehicles and that a smaller number of interference possibilities along the exclusive lane permits higher bus speeds between bus stops.