Needs and wishes of older cyclists regarding a feed-forward system to support cycling

Cycling supports the independence and health of the aging population. However, elderly cyclists have an increased injury risk due to a fall with their bicycle. A large proportion of the number of injured cyclists is victim of a single-sided accident [1].The aim of this project is to come up with recommendations for a feed-forward system which is able to support the elderly cyclist; enabling the cyclist to timely adapt his cycling behaviour and improve cycling safety and comfort. For the development of such a feed-forward system, the wishes, needs and expectations of the elderly cyclist must be known. To obtain such information elderly cyclists were consulted through a questionnaire and in-depth interviews. In the questionnaires, the elderly cyclists were asked to describe their experiences regarding bicycle usage, physical and cognitive impairments, (adaptation of) cycling behaviour, critical cycling situations and wishes with respect to technological support. Subsequently, interviews were conducted with twelve elderly (age > 65) to obtain more in-depth information about the responses to the questionnaire. In total, more than 800 subjects responded to the questionnaire, 400 questionnaires were analysed so far. Preliminary results concern the behaviour in traffic and identify specific physical (e.g. problems looking backwards over the shoulder) and mental issues. Furthermore, the needs and wishes for support in specific cycling situations were identified. Results from the personal interviews complemented the above knowledge and provide more in-depth information. In conclusion; the results of the questionnaires and the interviews provide detailed information about the user requirements of the feed-forward system. These requirements will give direction to the development of cycling supporting feed-forward technology.