UWEC CERCA 2026

Cycling has become a central focus of Germany’s climate strategy, yet perceptions of safety remain a barrier to broader adoption. In this study, we examine spatial and demographic patterns of cycling safety perceptions in Marburg, Germany, a compact university city characterized by steep topography and a historic center. We distributed an online survey in German and English that asked participants to identify unsafe locations and provide demographic information. With this data, we created an interactive heat map to visualize patterns and applied density-based spatial clustering to identify statistically meaningful concentrations of unsafe points. Perceived risks were most frequently concentrated in the city center and along high-traffic corridors. Gender differences in cycling confidence, the influence of safety on route choice, and trip frequency were not statistically significant, though distributions point to subtle variations in how risk is evaluated. These findings provide critical insight into local cycling conditions and establish a foundation for future research on cycling safety.