CommuterVis: Visually Understanding Commuter Behaviour in Canada

Too many people drive cars for commuting to work. If people used more active and sustainable transportation options this would reduce the impact on the environment and likely increase peoples physical activity and well-being. Our project partner Sustainable Alberta Association (SAA) is a not for profit organization that organize a Canadian annual wide competition called Commuter Challenge held during Environment Canada Week where individuals and work places track their commuting behaviour over a week. In this research project we propose to visually explore the commuting behaviour data to better understand how participants commute within Canadian cities. Our goal is to raise awareness of commuting behaviour via visualizations to help organizations such as city councils and local governments to improve their business decisions when making investment into sustainable transportation infrastructure such as public transit, bike pathways, and electric vehicle recharge stations.

Faculty Supervisor:

Frank Maurer

Student:

Rahul Bhaskar

Partner:

Sustainable Alberta Association

Discipline:

Computer science

Sector:

Environmental industry

University:

University of Calgary