Bicycle Network Analysis
BICYCLE NETWORK ANALYSIS
The Bicycle Network Analysis (BNA) helps communities measure the quality of their low-stress bike network. It assesses the degree to which people can comfortably bike to the places they want to go. Our goal with the tool is to lower the barrier to basic network analysis and encourage cities of all sizes to build connected, comfortable bike networks.
The BNA uses a modified “Level of Traffic Stress” approach, intended to correspond with the comfort level of a typical adult with an interest in riding a bike but who is concerned about interactions with vehicular traffic. It relies on data from two sources: The U.S. Census and OpenStreetMap. For more information about the methodology, click here.
Click here for PDF instructions on how to use the BNA, or watch a short video demonstration below.
Help us improve the BNA.
- The BNA is an evolving project and your thoughts will help us make sure that it is useful and actionable in the long-term. Give us your feedback here.
- Tell us how accurate the OpenStreetMap is relative to the comfortable bike network and destinations for your city.
- Suggest any future changes or modifications that would make the BNA more useful for you.
- Give us some ideas about how you can use the BNA today and how you would like to use it tomorrow.
- The accuracy of the BNA is dependent on the information about roads, bike facilities, and destinations in the OpenStreetMap. Make sure the OpenStreetMap is accurate including information about the roads, bike facilities, and key destinations. Here is a guide to doing so. You can reach out to your local OpenStreetMap, GIS, and/or academic communities for help.
Because the OpenStreetMap is free to access, there are many additional benefits to having updated maps. For example, third-party applications like Strava use OSM as do many other wayfinding and destination apps.
How can my city get a BNA?
In 2017, we ran the BNA for 300 U.S. cities. They were selected for analysis based on the following criteria:
- Cities and towns that submitted a PlacesForBikes City Snapshot.
- The 100 largest cities in the U.S.
- Places where bike retailers completed the PlacesForBikes Community Survey.
- Other places were selected based on their interactions with PlacesForBikes and to achieve broad geographic reach among places of all sizes.
To make sure your city gets a BNA for 2018, encourage city staff to complete the PlacesForBikes City Snapshot.
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