Visualizing & Predicting Trail Usage

Background

Since 1991, Friends of the Riverfront has worked to protect and restore the riverfront in the Pittsburgh region through trail development and stewardship after decades of legacy pollution. The Three Rivers Heritage Trail now encompasses 33 miles of urban and suburban riverfront trails along both banks of the Allegheny, Monongahela, and Ohio rivers.

Details

Goal 1: Visualization of Trail Usage

Data visualizations will help stakeholders understand the current usage of the trail, identify trends, and communicate insights effectively to officials and potential funders. For instance, heat maps could help us understand what part of the trail is being used the most, which could inform allocation of infrastructure services like parking places, signage, benches, and kiosks.

Deliverables include

• Heat maps to identify high-traffic areas and peak usage times.
• Flow diagrams to show the direction of movement and popular segments.
• Line and bar charts to compare usage over time, by region, or season.

Goal 2: Predictive Modeling for Trail Usage Forecasting

Develop a predictive model to forecast future trail usage, to inform maintenance planning and support grant applications. For instance, if trail usage for a new section is planned to be high, then that data could be used to justify funds for using a more durable surface type.

Deliverables include

• Analyze historical data from Ecocounter and gather relevant data such as weather (temperature, precipitation), events, and geography
• Identify relevant features that can influence trail usage, such as day of the week, holidays, proximity to urban centers, accessibility improvements, and regional events.
• Choose suitable predictive modeling techniques to predict trail usage of new areas. Potentially collaborate with the visualization team to map these predictions.