The Role of the Bicycle in Urban Sustainable Transportation

Extended Abstract
Considering the importance of urban sustainable development and increasingly importance of it in contemporary urban issues, bicycle as a means of essential sustainable transportation is considered in related literature. Bonab is the suitable case for cycling because of natural conditions including favorable climate, suited in plain and human characteristics such as: high population density and tissue compact city, short urban trips, the spatial distribution of villages around it and finally, there infrastructure cycling .This paper attempts to show the importance of cycling in Bonab transportation and surveying the factors of tending citizen to it. The methodology of this research is descriptive-analytic and based on field work 105 questionnaires distributed among samples.
As a result of studies, more than 71 percent of samples use bicycle as a transport means. According to the questionnaire obtained significant relationship between different segments of society and use of bicycles. 37.5 percent of total bicycle users are students. In other words, the students are most important bicycle users. Cycling needs many power and energy, so than the elderly and even adults can not use bicycle. In fact, one can say that with risen age, the rate of bicycle is reduced. So between age and the rate of bicycle use is inversely. The second factor used more students bicycle is path near the school house. In other the word, Bonab is the most compact city in East Azerbaijan Pronvice, and distance between schools and houses is less than 4 km. The biggest factor that prevents students from using a bike is lack of security for cyclists with the dominance of car and motorcyclists transport on the city. After the students, businessmen are the major bicycle users. Nearly 30 percent of the samples use the bicycle to go to school, which including students, teachers, staff and workers of education centers. Nearly 23 samples use the bicycle to work place and 19 percent samples to shopping. Not only to Bonab citizens use bicyde but also surrounding villages that are located near the city use bicycle for journey to city. High transport costs in those villages and paved and privacy streets are the next reasons for the villagers use the bicycle. Short path is a very important factor for the development and encourage Bonab citizens to bike. Sport and health is important in the next rank. 54.7 percent of citizens have preferred to bicycle transportation, and for 43.8 percent of citizens, public transportation is preferred. More citizens in their reasons for preferring to bicycle transportation, short course, exercise and health and be time-consuming public transport have mentioned. Lack of security for cyclists, lack special routes, and the long path are among the main limitations for use bicycle. Low social status, perhaps as one of the main barriers to use bicycle in our cities, is not only low in Bonab but use the bicycle is a part of the city's culture, so that bicycles per capita for each household is 2.7 (excluding women ).
One advantage of the city Bonab facilitate cycling compared to other cities in Iran is special bicycle paths. Construction of special routes that maybe the most important action in order to facilitate cycling, one of the paths (St. Imam) to the city center also reaches. More than 63 percent of citizens believe that application special bike paths in city is weak. While 31 percent also believe that special bike paths do not apply at all. Main reason for the no application special bicycle paths is occupying it’s by owners. In fact, citizens believe this path become a become a parking for the shop owners and on over time also are destroyed.
In addition to construction of special paths, one of the most important measures to facilitate cycling in the city is to create bicycle parking.
It is true that cyclists in this city of many problems such as lack of security, bicycle paths occupied by shop owners, not enough special routes, etc. suffered, but this city can be considered as a model for other cities of the country. Bikes can be as Means compatible with environment, need not to value fuel sources such as gasoline, useful for the health and availability for all, replacement car and other motor vehicles in cities is with the condition that should be considered more.