Surf Coast Shire Council set ambitious targets to reduce serious injuries and fatalities on its road network. However, like many local authorities, it faced a critical challenge:

Traditional data sources — such as crash data, surveys, and traffic counts — could not provide a clear picture of where cyclists were experiencing risk, or why.

This created a gap in decision-making:

Infrastructure investment was being prioritised without a continuous, objective understanding of real-world cycling conditions.

The Approach

As part of the TAC-supported Light Insights Trial (LIT) extension project:

• 350 cyclists contributed continuous, anonymised sensor data
• Behavioural signals included braking, swerving, and road surface quality
• Data was combined with engineering analysis, historical crash data, and user-reported feedback

This provided:

A continuous, street-level view of how cyclists actually experience infrastructure — not just where incidents have already occurred.

Proof Point: Measuring the Impact of a Dutch-Style Roundabout

At Fischer Street in Torquay, a compact Dutch-style roundabout was installed at a known crash location.

Safety upgrades implemented on this corridor included:

• a compact Dutch-style roundabout
• extended roundabout centre islands
• shared lane “sharrow” markings
• raised pedestrian crossings.

Using See.Sense data, Surf Coast Shire was able to evaluate the performance of a newly installed Dutch-style roundabout at Fischer Street:

• 65% reduction in swerving
• 50% reduction in harsh braking
• 41% improvement in surface quality indicators
• No reduction in cycling speeds

This provides rare, objective validation that the intervention improved safety — something traditional data cannot deliver.

Engineering plan showing a low-cost intervention (~$10k) to remove obstructions from the cycle lane and eliminate avoidable safety risk.

The issue was identified through behavioural data showing repeated swerving and braking events on bin collection days, and reports made by cyclists using the app.

Without this insight, the likely response would have been a high-cost infrastructure upgrade. Instead, a targeted intervention addressed the root cause directly.

From Projects to Network Optimisation

Traditionally, cycling investment focuses on large, isolated infrastructure projects.

However, Surf Coast Shire used See.Sense data to identify:

• High-priority routes across the network
• Specific “pinch points” limiting safety and accessibility
• The underlying causes of these issues

This enabled a different approach:

Targeting multiple small, high-impact interventions across the network — rather than relying on single large projects.

Importantly, the priority routes identified through sensor data aligned with those highlighted in large-scale surveys — but with far greater precision and actionable detail.

This shifts planning from delivering isolated projects to optimising the performance of the entire network.

A Continuous Improvement Model

The project introduced a new way of working:

1. Identify risk using behavioural data
2. Implement targeted interventions
3. Measure impact using the same dataset

This creates an ongoing feedback loop — enabling continuous improvement rather than one-off planning decisions.

Independent Validation

“See.Sense data added value by highlighting specific locations and safety issues that may have been overlooked when considering traditional data sources only.”
— O’Brien Traffic

Impact and Outcomes

Surf Coast Shire Council achieved:

• Objective evaluation of infrastructure performance
• Identification of previously unknown safety risks
• Ability to prioritise high-impact, low-cost interventions
• Stronger evidence for funding and business cases
• A scalable, repeatable model for network-wide planning

This approach enables councils to deliver greater safety improvements with the same budget by targeting the highest-impact locations.

This approach also supports:

• Estimated $500k–$2M savings over 5 years through targeted investment

Why This Matters

Traditional approaches tend to:

• invest heavily in isolated infrastructure projects
• overlook smaller barriers that limit network usability

This project demonstrates a different model:

Fixing the “gaps” in the network can be more effective than building single high-cost assets.

The Takeaway

Surf Coast Shire moved from:

• Reactive, project-based planning

to:

• Proactive, data-driven network optimisation

Enabling:

Enabling better safety outcomes, stronger business cases, and more effective use of limited infrastructure budgets.

Explore Cycling Insight Data

See.Sense works with cities, transport agencies, and road safety organisations worldwide to deliver sensor-based cycling insight data that supports safer infrastructure and better transport decisions.

If you would like to explore how connected cycling data could support your city or region, contact the See.Sense team to learn more.