ABSTRACT

The evaluation of electric bike (e-bike) riders’ perception of comfort can lead to a better understanding of user requirements. This can be performed through Level-of-service (LOS) studies. To date, the e-bike LOS (ELOS) concept is scarcely developed and research concerning e-bike travel behaviour characteristics is relatively sparse. In this paper, we use bike LOS (BLOS) studies as a foundation to identify the knowledge gap for ELOS. Along with BLOS, e-bike riding comfort and the distinction between bikes and e-bikes characteristics were scrutinised. Travel behaviour, and e-bike modal substitution research were also reviewed to provide a better picture of e-bike riders’ requirements. Based on these domains, we propose a preliminary conceptual framework for the development of ELOS. The results suggest that there is a limited number of studies that whether explicitly evaluate ELOS or consider the e-bike in the BLOS analysis. Also, the extent of substitution of cars, public transport, and bikes by e-bikes can range from partial to complete replacement, thus potentially affecting ELOS developments. The specification of this substitution contributes to a deeper understanding of the ELOS concept in relation to the adaptation of LOS indices used for other transport modes. Finally, it appears evident that ELOS developments would require further research on e-bike interaction analysis in shared mobility in which vulnerable road users are present. The findings of this study help researchers and policy-makers assessing the knowledge gap in ELOS and provide them a preliminary conceptual framework for ELOS development.

摘要

对电动自行车（e-bike）骑手对舒适度的感知进行评估可以更好地了解用户需求。这可以通过服务水平 (LOS) 研究来执行。迄今为止，电动自行车LOS（ELOS）概念还很少发展，关于电动自行车出行行为特征的研究相对较少。在本文中，我们使用自行车 LOS（BLOS）研究作为确定 ELOS 知识差距的基础。与 BLOS 一起，电动自行车的骑行舒适性以及自行车和电动自行车特性之间的区别也受到了审查。还审查了旅行行为和电动自行车模式替代研究，以更好地了解电动自行车骑手的需求。基于这些领域，我们为ELOS的发展提出了一个初步的概念框架。结果表明，在 BLOS 分析中明确评估 ELOS 或考虑电动自行车的研究数量有限。此外，电动自行车替代汽车、公共交通和自行车的程度可以从部分替代到完全替代，因此可能会影响 ELOS 的发展。这种替代的规范有助于更深入地理解 ELOS 概念，以适应用于其他交通方式的 LOS 指数。最后，很明显，ELOS 的发展需要进一步研究电动自行车交互分析在共享出行中存在弱势道路使用者的情况。这项研究的结果有助于研究人员和政策制定者评估 ELOS 的知识差距，并为他们提供 ELOS 发展的初步概念框架。