The inspection and safety ratings of the Danube Area bicycle routes are one of the main activities of the SABRINA project. We are focusing on EuroVelo bicycle routes (EV no. 6, 8, 9, 11, 13, and 14) crossing countries involved in the SABRINA project. This was the project activity most affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, due to travel restrictions. However, after establishing an online database and several on-site equipment tests, safety inspections took place in Croatia and Slovenia. In mid-July, the third country, Austria, was surveyed by trained analysts from our project partner University of Zagreb, Faculty of Transport and Traffic Sciences (FPZ). Since most of the selected bicycle routes are separated from the roads, the cycling infrastructure was checked by bicycle, equipped with a front-facing camera with 170 degrees angle and a 360 degrees camera on the poll at the back of the bicycle.

More than 260 km of EV routes no. 6, 9, and 14 were filmed in Lower Austria along the Danube, through the capital Vienna and in southern Styria. The survey started in Styria on 14th July and took place on about 92 km between Leoben and Hart near Graz (video of the start of the tour in Styria, Euro Velo 14). The following day, about 95 km along EuroVelo 6 between Spitz an der Donau and Vienna (Nussdorf) were surveyed. Starting on the north bank, the team switched to the south bank in Krems to avoid construction sites and detours in the area between the Traismauer Danube bridge and the Altenwörth electricity station. From Vienna (Stammersdorf) to Wiener Neustadt, another 79 km of EuroVelo 9 were surveyed before leaving Austria and heading back to Croatia. 

The safety assessment that will follow will include more than 50 road design features that are known to influence the likelihood of accidents and the severity of injuries to road users and cyclists in mixed traffic. Every relevant design feature recorded during the video tour is assessed in accordance with the existing protocols of the Road Assessment Program (RAP) (iRAP and CycleRAP) and the European Certification Standard (ECS) developed by the European Cyclists' Federation (ECF). The results, including the iRAP Star Rating of the routes, will show how safe the respective routes are for cyclists and what could be done to improve their safety.

Stay tuned for more safety inspection news from other SABRINA project countries and for the results of our fieldwork. 

Photos: Faculty of Transport and Traffic Sciences, University of Zagreb