Ethnic inequalities in cycling to work in London – mobility injustice and regional approach

Research infographic showing key study results. Author: Zofia Bednarowska-Michaiel

Cycling benefits are well known in the context of public health, sustainable transportation, and climate change. Even more benefits come from commuting by bike. However, commuting by bike is primarily only popular in areas where cycling is popular in general. My research focuses on cycling in London.

London is one of the most diverse cities in the world, with an impressive public transport network, expanding cycling infrastructure, a popular image of cycle highways, bike sharing city and foldable bikes. Although London has the highest level of cycling across the UK, it has very low rates of bike commuting – and low equity level.

This study examines ethnic inequity in cycling. Do ethnic minorities in London have equal chances of cycling to work? What affects propensity to cycle to work across London? Does a higher percentage of ethnic minorities in a region reduce the proportion of bike commuters?

This research reveals the ethnic inequity in cycling to work in London regions: ethnic minorities are less likely to cycle due to spatially dependent inequalities. Overall, my study focused on London, but cycling inequity is true for a lot of cities.

The recognition of ethnic inequity in cycling to work (and proving it with a spatial model) is the first step towards making policy changes. My research reconfirms a need to address the cycling inequity in transportation policies with consideration to mobilities justice. This means that policy should address the needs of distinct groups of cyclists of various ethnic backgrounds.

Below are the links to open access paper, dataset, and a video abstract.

Video abstract

Paper

Bednarowska-Michaiel, Zofia. (2023). Ethnic inequalities in cycling to work in London - mobilities injustice and regional approach. Regional Studies, Regional Science, VOL. 10, NO. 1, 475–488. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/21681376.2023.2186802.

Dataset and R script

Bednarowska-Michaiel, Zofia. (2023). bednarowska/Cycling_Inequity: Ethnic inequalities in cycling (RSRS) (v3_2023). Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7861144