Australia’s largest commuter rider survey gathers trends and data on commuter movements across the country, providing local government with valuable information to guide their planning and infrastructure efforts.

More than 120,000 active travel journeys were logged during Super Tuesday 2023 on 7 March, as volunteers set up at 785 sites across Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia and New South Wales.

Expressions of interest and site nominations are now open for Super Tuesday 2024 in these locations (all areas expect the NT and Queensland).

Interested councils can visit Bicycle Network’s Super Counts page for more info, download the brochure here or get in touch at bikefutures@bicyclenetwork.com.au.

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Counters around Australia will take up positions alongside paths and trails to record the volume and behaviour of bike riders, walkers, runners, dog walkers and micro-mobility users.

The data they collect on recreational active travel helps councils and planners develop transport policies and prioritise infrastructure projects that benefit their communities.

The survey runs for three hours in the morning and Super Sunday volunteers receive a $120 credit towards a Bicycle Network membership, or a donation on their behalf to a charity, school, sports club or not-for-profit organisation.

Sites are starting to fill up but there are still plenty of locations up for grabs round Australia. In particular, we have need of helping hands in the following council areas:

• Whitsunday (QLD)
• Mornington Peninsula, Campaspe, Banyule, Manningham, Whittlesea, Wyndham, Bass Coast, Port Phillip, Melbourne (VIC)
• Newcastle, Wagga Wagga, Sydney -> Randwick, Sutherland, Canterbury-Bankstown, Bayside, Willoughby (NSW)
• Perth -> Belmont, Vincent (WA)
• Adelaide -> Mitcham, Marion (SA)

If you’d like to get involved as a volunteer for Super Sunday 2023, visit our interactive map here, click on an available site in blue and fill out your contact details. A count sheet and instructions will be sent to you ahead of the day.

The City of Vincent in Perth will hold its Super Sunday counts the week later, on 19 November. Register here.

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Super Sunday counts take place each November and record information about weekend users of off-road paths. This includes bike riders, walkers, runners, e-scooter riders and dog walkers to paint a picture of recreational trail use.

Councils from around the country are preparing for this year’s Super Sunday count on 12 November. The data collected informs councils on how their paths and trails are being used and what improvements can be made.

This informs their planning and active transport policies with the goal of developing infrastructure that encourages physical activity and sustainable ways for Australians to get around.

Super Sunday counts are conducted by Bicycle Network members and volunteers, who receive a $120 donation for their time to go towards either a club, organisation or charity of their choosing or a one-year Bicycle Network membership.

For those interested in volunteering, you can register your interest here. Bicycle Network will confirm the available sites around the country and the participating councils in October. Keep an eye on the website for more details.

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Bicycle Network’s Super Tuesday counts are annual surveys that gather data for local councils on active travel to offer insights into the mode and direction of traffic, along with the gender of road users and traffic volumes at different intervals.

Super Tuesday Top End takes place on the last Tuesday in July in Darwin, Palmerston and Katherine and spots remain available at each of these locations.

All volunteer counters receive either a $70 credit towards a Bicycle Network membership or donation towards any nominated charity, school, sports club or not-for-profit organisation.

Thousands of volunteers across the country take part in Super Tuesday counts and gather important data to help governments improve bike riding conditions in their area.

To get involved in  Super Tuesday Top End, register here.

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Although still not reaching the levels of pre-COVID commuting, riding to work is strongly on the rise.

Bicycle Network, in association with local councils, tallies bikes on key routes across Melbourne and Australia on a Tuesday in March each year.

Numbers have been sadly depressed in recent years due to the impact of work-from-home arrangements for office workers, remote education, and entertainment and dining sector impediments.

Bicycle Network has produced a rapid analysis of usually busy routes in and around city to gain some early insights into the Super Tuesday count results. Across sites sampled, the numbers were up an average 64% over last year, but are still down 34% compared to pre-COVID data.

The post Riding to Melbourne CBD bounces back appeared first on Bicycle Network.

The annual Super Tuesday South Count was completed on 6^th of September, 2022 from 7am – 9am, with some surveys completed on following Tuesdays where required.

Over 8,000 bike riders were counted at 117 sites across five council areas in the northern parts of the state. Geraldton, Logan, Redland, Toowoomba and Townsville were the participating councils for 2022.

In Queensland, sites that have been counted in a previous Super Tuesday North survey saw an increase in riders of 5 per cent.

Overall, cycling volumes were down 5 per cent across all sites which were measured in a previous Super Tuesday count. This number is massively influenced by the results in Geraldton, where poor weather saw a large reduction in bike riders on the survey dates.

Sites in the City of Redland in Queensland showed the most promising results, with a 134 per cent increase on average compared with the previous Super Tuesday North count there in 2019.

It was estimated that 22 per cent of riders across the Super Tuesday North surveys were women, compared with the national average of 25 per cent estimated in the Super Tuesday South counts in March. The peak hour for riders was between 7:30am-8:30am, and the busiest 15-minute section between 8:15am-8:30am.

Bicycle Network has been recording commuter volumes at council-identified sites through Super Count events since 2007, making it one of the largest and most reliable active transport data surveys in the country.

The 2022 Super Tuesday South count raised nearly $10,000 through volunteer counter donations for community organisations and clubs, charities, and fundraisers.

Registrations for volunteer counters are currently open around Australia for Super Sunday 2022, which will take place on November 13.

Interested councils can get in touch about future Super Counts events, AIRS automated surveys, or other customised data collection by contacting bikefutures@bicyclenetwork.com.au

Historical Super Tuesday data can be viewed on the data dashboard, which provides an open-source portal for transport planners, researchers, media and interested bike riders to gather valuable bike data, which received a new update in June.

You can read about the national results from the Super Tuesday counts completed in March, 2022 here.

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The Super Tuesday event took place on 1 March this year, with 37 participating councils in Victoria, New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania and Western Australia.

A breakdown of overall stats for the participating states and each LGA can be found in the report, to see how bike riding volumes varied spatially around major cities and regional areas.

A record 810 counters were stationed at 760 sites and recorded nearly 85,000 bicycle movements across the two-hour period.

On sites that were also measured in 2021, there was a 14% decrease nationwide in total volume of bike riders. Western Australia was the standout state in terms of ridership improvements, with an 18% increase compared with 2021 counts of the same sites.

Women were estimated to represent 25% of bike riders, which is consistent with the 2021 total proportion.

A total of $46,920 was donated to community groups, clubs, charities and fundraisers across the event.

Queensland, Northern Territory, and northern Western Australia will participate in the Super Tuesday North event, taking place on the 6 September to make use of the best weather conditions for riding in those areas.

During each event, hundreds of volunteer counters count bicycles and other forms of active travellers on crucial pieces of infrastructure, from shared-use paths to roads.

Keep an eye on the website for opportunities to get involved as a counter, with registrations opening in October 2022 for Super Sunday around the country and sites currently available for counting in Queensland and Western Australia ahead of Super Tuesday North.

Interested councils can get in touch about future Super Counts events or other customised data collection by contacting bikefutures@bicyclenetwork.com.au

Historical Super Tuesday data can be viewed on the data dashboard, which provides an open-source portal for transport planners, researchers, media and interested bike riders to gather valuable bike data, which received a new update in June.

The post Super Tuesday National Report provides insights into post-pandemic bike riding trends appeared first on Bicycle Network.

The annual Super Tuesday South Count was completed on the 1^st of March from 7am – 9am, with a small number of sites counted on recount dates later in March.

In total, 84,471 bike riders were counted at 760 sites across 37 council areas located around Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia and New South Wales.

Western Australia produced the best results of all the states, with sites increasing rider volume by 18 per cent on average compared to 2021 counts.

Overall, cycling volumes were down 15 per cent across all sites which were measured in the 2021 Super Tuesday counts. This could be partly explained by work-flexibility allowing many commuters to work from home, as well as some poor forecasted weather on count days across the east coast.

In particular, New South Wales riders experienced wet weather through much of March, resulting in lower commuter count volumes than previous years.

Amongst Victorian LGAs, Moreland (-2 per cent), Brimbank (-4 per cent) and Maribyrnong (-7 per cent) recorded the smallest decline in growth across sites compared with 2021 volumes, while Melbourne saw a decline of 13 per cent.

Bicycle Network has been recording commuter volumes at council-identified sites through Super Count events since 2007, making it one of the largest and most reliable active transport data surveys in the country.

The 2022 Super Tuesday South count raised $46,920 through volunteer counter donations for community organisations and clubs, charities, and fundraisers. Counters stand on key intersections and thoroughfares on shared-use paths, roads, trails and other forms of infrastructure.

This article was made possible by the support of Bicycle Network’s members who enable us to make bike riding better in Australia.

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The data comes from Bicycle Network’s ‘Super Counts’ program, which comprises two annual counting events: ‘Super Tuesday’, a two-hour count of bike commuters during a morning in March; and ‘Super Sunday’ a four-hour count of people undertaking recreational activity (bike riding, walking etc) during November.

During each event, hundreds of volunteers take to the streets to count bikes and other active travelers at a given path or intersection.

Since 2010, the Super Counts program has collected over 15,000 pieces of count data, spanning across 3000 locations and 125 council areas. All data between 2010-2019 is now available to the public.

The data dashboard will provide planners, researchers, students, media and the general public with valuable bike data for promoting bike advocacy.

You can visit the Super Counts data dashboard here.

This article was made possible by the support of Bicycle Network’s members who enable us to make bike riding better in Australia.

The post Ten years of bike count data for public use appeared first on Bicycle Network.

More than 600 bike lovers were stationed on road and bike trails in Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Perth, Alice Springs and regional Victoria.

450 of the count sites were in Melbourne where workplaces were allowed to return to 75 per cent capacity this week.

Despite fingers being numbed by especially chilly weather, tally marks were still able to be made including on count sheets for new bike lanes built in the city to encourage people to choose bikes for a COVID-safe commute. 

Bicycle Network spokesperson Anthea Hargreaves said data gathered today will help show the number of people heading into the office for work as well as how the new bike lanes have been received by riders.

“Super Tuesday will help us understand how many people who have started going back to the office are also getting on their bikes and how they’re using the improved bike lane network,” said Ms Hargreaves.

While there were still plenty of people riding bikes, early data gathered from the count indicates that overall commuter numbers might be down on 2020 figures. However, with people still adjusting to post-lockdown routines this is not surprising. As workplace capacities increase and more bike lanes are rolled out, numbers should increase.

Plenty of people pedalling down the new St Kilda Rd pop up bike lane this morning. I’m counting the days until a permanent protected lane runs the length of this great street pic.twitter.com/FvdY9arGdk

— Craig Richards (@richobicycle) March 1, 2021

As well as how many people are riding, Super Tuesday also records information about the number of men and women at each location. Roads and trails that have been well designed generally have more even gender splits.

Data is collected on behalf of councils who use the information to assess local bike networks and plan future upgrades.

Regular Super Tuesday participant Tasmania postponed their count to Thursday this week because of a horrid weather forecast for Tuesday. Counting today would not have given an accurate number of regular bike commuters.

Super Tuesday is held in southern states during March and northern states during September when the weather is better for bike riding.

More information about Super Tuesday including a map with participating councils and count site locations, registrations and more is available at supertuesday.com.au.

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