Bike-Pedestrian Counters

Objective

The City of Norfolk initiated a Bike-Pedestrian Counter Program in March 2021 to provide a reliable method of data collection. The data will be used to:

Justify the existence of existing infrastructure
Support the planning & investment for future network expansions and safety measures for both modes
Advance the goal of making biking & walking more comfortable and more connected in Norfolk

The first phase of counter installations focused on existing bike lane locations. The location of these counters is shown in the map below. The second phase of counter installations will focus on other existing bike lane locations as well as new bike lanes implemented according to the Multimodal Transportation Master Plan and the City of Norfolk Bicycle and Pedestrian Strategic Plan.

Types of Counters

There are currently two types of counters in the City of Norfolk: Roadsys Counters and Eco-Counters

Roadsys Counters: Solar-powered aluminum posts with two electric sensors installed into the pavement of the bike lanes (left image). The mixed bike-pedestrian counters also include an infrared sensor that faces the sidewalk (middle image).
Eco-Counters: Wooden posts with electric sensors installed into the adjacent pavement (right image). There are currently seven Eco-Counters in Norfolk that have been installed at specific locations along the Elizabeth River Trail since 2019.

Data Collection

The bike counters use an inductive loop sensor technology and have been installed to detect bicycles in existing bike lanes. The pedestrian counters use an infrared sensor to count pedestrians on the adjacent sidewalk. Some counters are bicycle only counters and some are mixed bike and pedestrian counters.

Data collected includes bicycle & pedestrian counts as well as direction and headway of bicyclists. View the Bike and Pedestrian Trip Counts dataset on the Norfolk Open Data portal. The dataset comprises data from the Roadsys counters and the Eco-Counters.

Counter Locations

The 22 installed bike-pedestrian counters in Norfolk are displayed in the following table & map. View the current Norfolk Bike Network map.

Bicycle Data

The graphs below only show bicycle data collected for the Roadsys counters (numbers 8-22 on the map above). View the full Bike and Pedestrian Trip Counts dataset on the Norfolk Open Data portal. This dataset comprises data from the Roadsys counters and the Eco-Counters.

Data shows high trip counts for the protected bike lanes such as on Llewellyn Ave, Olney Rd, and W. 35th St. The higher counts on Llewellyn Ave, Olney Rd, and 35th St illustrate how good connections to other bike facilities within the bike network has had a significant positive impact on ridership.
As expected, ridership increases as the weather warms. Higher ridership counts have been recorded for the summer and fall months (June-November).

Pedestrian Data

The graphs below only show pedestrian data collected for the Roadsys counters (numbers 8-22 on the map above). View the full Bike and Pedestrian Trip Counts dataset on the Norfolk Open Data portal. This dataset comprises data from the Roadsys counters and the Eco-Counters.

Data shows that the highest number of pedestrian counts is found on Olney Rd in Ghent. The high counts illustrate how a well-connected and accessible pedestrian network has a positive impact on the number of users.
As with the bicycle counts, the pedestrian counts increase during the warmer months. The highest counts have been recorded for the summer and fall months (June-November) with the spring months (March-May) following closely.