5.1 Benefits of switching from driving to cycling
In this section, estimates for the difference in costs between cycling and
driving are shown, as are the benefits of switching from car to bicycle for a daily
commute. Finally, the net benefits of building a bicycle lane network in Truro are
presented.
Table 2 illustrates the estimated per-kilometre-traveled costs in 2012
Canadian dollars from Litman (2009) for the modes of transportation of bicycles
and the average car. The average total cost, external and internal, of driving a car
for one kilometre is $0.577, while this is just $0.228 on a bicycle. The greatest cost
of driving a car is vehicle ownership, and the greatest cost of driving a bicycle is
travel time. Driving a bicycle also incurs internal and external health benefits,
which are represented in Table 2 as negative costs. The difference between the
costs of driving a car and a bicycle can be interpreted as the benefits of
commuting by bicycle rather than driving a car. Hence, the total net benefit of
switching the mode of commute from a car to a bicycle is estimated to be $0.349
per kilometre for an individual.