OA2038. Perceived safety in urban transport: Context and infrastructure knowledge from the AMIGOS project

Abstract Background Sustainable and inclusive urban mobility depends not only on objective safety, but also on how safe people feel when walking, cycling, or using public transport. Perceived safety influences travel choices, particularly among vulnerable groups. Within the EU Horizon 2020-funded AMIGOS project, we investigate how perceptions of safety vary across cities and how these are shaped by infrastructural and contextual characteristics. Methods We analyzed survey data from over 8,500 respondents in ten European and Middle Eastern cities. Participants reported how safe they felt using various transport modes. These responses were linked to local data on infrastructure quality, traffic density, lighting, and recorded accidents. Using multilevel models, we assessed how both individual and city-level factors affect perceived safety. Results Perceived safety differed substantially between cities, even when objective accident risks were similar. Features such as dedicated bike lanes, segregated sidewalks, good lighting, and urban greenery were more strongly associated with higher perceived safety than accident statistics. Women and older adults consistently reported feeling less safe, especially when walking or cycling. Moreover, respondents in lower-income cities expressed lower perceived safety across all transport modes, independent of actual risk. Conclusions Planning for safe mobility requires addressing not only physical risks but also psychological barriers. Improving perceived safety—through high-quality, inclusive design—can support a shift to more sustainable modes. The AMIGOS project highlights the value of combining subjective perception data with spatial context to inform evidence-based, equitable transport policy. Key messages • Perceived safety is shaped more by infrastructure and environment than by accident data, and varies strongly across cities. • People in lower-income cities feel less safe using all transport modes, highlighting the need for context-sensitive design in mobility planning. Topic Perceived safety, active mobility, infrastructure.