Use of an agent-based model to explore urban transitions in commuter cycling

Encouraging a cycling culture while reducing car usage can lead to substantial health and environmental benefits. In this exploratory work, we use an agent-based model of commuter cycling focusing on the emergence of social norms due to interactions between agents and their environment (including their social networks). The overall goal is to develop an understanding of change and continuity in cycle commuting, and how this is shaped by dynamic relationships between social expectations and individual attributes. Initial characteristics of agents and the distribution of cycling in the population come from the Census and secondary quantitative data. The theoretical basis of our work comes from qualitative studies on cycling and from 'Theories of Practice', which see practices as enrolling individuals, depending on whether they have the material and cultural resources required to participate. Thus, rather than treating humans as rational individuals who, for example, follow the precepts of utility maximization, we explore how changes in norms surrounding cycling practices (such as social expectations around clothing and accessories) shape uptake, and how uptake then affects social norms relating to cycling., We test policies for increasing cycling usage based on provision of cycling stuff and improvements to the environment.