Table 10 presents the characteristics of the three clusters.

The Pearson’s X2 test for a statistical

significance α < 0.04 presented the relation of the three clusters with other quality variables.
Correspondingly, the analysis of variance (one-way ANOVA) for statistical significance α < 0.003
revealed the relation of the three clusters with the quantitative variables. Table 10. Interpretation of
the clusters’ observations (Sp: Standard error of proportion). Variables Cluster 1 Cluster 2 Cluster 3
Benefits for the user Affected (marginally) Not affected Affected Benefits for the society Not
affected (marginally) Not affected Affected Charge for the user Affected (marginally) Affected Not
affected Deficiency of infrastructures Affected Not affected Not affected Use of bicycle Rarely-never
Always-sometimes Always-sometimes With the check of Pearson’s X2 Suitability of the city for
cycling Enough–not at all Enough–not at all Very sufficiently-sufficiently The use of the bicycle in the
pedestrian zone No Yes Yes Financing from the state for buying bicycle Not accept Not accept Accept
Influence by the others’ residents bicycling No No Yes Bicycle owner No Yes Yes Bicycle driver No Yes
Yes Age 31–50 years 18–30 years >50 years With analysis of variance One-Way ANOVA
Transportations in the city by walking mean 2.324 km sp 3.7155 mean 3.857 km sp 3.9752 mean
2.452 km sp 2.2096 Transportations in the city by cycling mean 0.241 km sp 1.9377 mean 4.524 km
sp 5.2482 mean 4.514 km sp 4.7976 Transportations in the city by car mean 6.509 km sp 12.9705
mean 2.222 km sp 4.0777 mean 3.163 km sp 6.8712 The first cluster included residents who rarely or
never cycle and consider infrastructure deficiencies as the most important negative factor that
influence cycling. They considered the city of Preveza not suitable for cycling, and did not accept the
use of bicycles in sidewalks and pedestrian zones, nor did they accept state financial support in
bicycle acquisition. The first cluster was made up of middle aged (31–50 years old) residents not
familiar with cycling. They were not positively affected by seeing other residents cycling and they
traveled mainly by car or walking. The second cluster included residents who always or sometimes
used bicycles for their transportation needs. They found their city not suitable for cycling. The
second cluster was made up of young aged people (18–30 years old) who knew how to cycle and
were positively affected by seeing other people cycling. They covered with bicycle the same distance
as residents of the third cluster, but shorter distances by car and longer distances on foot. Although
they accepted the use of bicycles on the road pavement and on the pedestrian zone, they did not
accept the concept of financial support from the state. The main characteristic of this cluster was the
perceived negative factors that influence cycling, which were physical exhaustion and feeling of
oddity. The third cluster included more than half of the residents. They owned bicycle and most of
them were over 50 years old. Furthermore, they considered both the benefits for the residents and
society as the most important positive factors influencing the use of the bicycle. They accepted the
use of bicycles in the pedestrian zone and on sidewalks. They stated that Preveza was suitable or
very suitable for cycling. This the cluster had the most positive cycling attitude and, more
specifically, a positive attitude toward financial support from the state. They moved in the city
mainly by cycling. 4. Discussion and Conclusions The city of Preveza is a small-sized Greek city where
the bicycle is a popular mode of transportation. The results of this study showed that the vast
majority of the residents rode bicycles Sustainability 2018, 10, 268 14 of 18 and had positive views
on cycling as a mode of transportation. Meanwhile, the percentage of unhappy residents was
significant. More than half of them used bicycle always or often for their daily transportation. In
contrast to all other Greek cities where, according to [29], 7.5% of the residents were regular and
only 1.8% occasional cyclists, in Preveza, the use of bicycles was comparative to Danish residents, of
whom 50.1% were regular cyclists and 8% occasional cyclists. Preveza is a city with low steepness,
attractive climate and green landscapes suitable for cycling, according to the majority of residents.
However, they evaluated the existing infrastructure as bad or very bad and were disappointed with
the insufficient support from the state and other local bodies. The lack of infrastructure was
associated with less safety, especially for children [72]. The residents found the use of cycling little or
not at all safe, especially for children as young cyclists rarely follow the road code. Furthermore,
most of the drivers did not respect cyclists on the road. Ortuzar [25] stated that car and bus drivers
in Chile had the same scant behavior, especially in cycle lanes painted on the pavement that were
not segregated from the traffic. It is suggested that the current situation should be improved by
using training courses focusing mostly on young cyclists. Le Pira et al. [51] in Catania, a medium sized
Italian city, represented alternatives of promoting cycling mobility, information, and education
campaigns. The economic crisis that Greece has experienced since 2008 and the increased ticket
prices in public transportation services and high car maintenance costs, as well as increased
environmental consciousness have turned people to use their car less, increasing their preference to
use other modes (bicycles and walking) [73]. Bakogiannis et al. [74] in a recent research in Karditsa
city found that when the number of bicycle users increased, the number of cars in the city center
significantly dropped and the character of the city changed. The results of the present study
revealed that the use of bicycles by an increased number of residents positively affected their own
decision to use it. In their childhood, residents used bicycles for their mobility, but during their
adolescence they gave up cycling and started using motorcycles instead as other teenagers teased
them. Ortuzar [25] highlighted the cultural and idiosyncrasy bias against the use of bicycles as a
mean of transportation mainly caused by years of funny and well-done car dealers’ propaganda
television sketches ridiculing bicycle use on national TV channels. Middle-aged residents did not use
bicycles because of their stressful schedule of work and family obligations. Meanwhile, in the elder
ages, the residents had more free time and started using bicycles again for their mobility.
Nevertheless, according to the results, distances further than two-kilometers proved a deterrent to
the use of bicycles, mostly because of the variable of physical exhaustion, especially among the
elderly population. According to Sousa Silva et al. [75], sustainable urban development should be
guided by a planning vision that promotes green infrastructure interconnected with the hinterland
green areas, a multi-modal transportation system, and mixed-use multifunctional landscapes. For
Preveza city, which lacks public transport in the inner city, there has been a proposal to expand and
improve bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure that will decrease the distance travelled by vehicles. In
order to allow riding bicycles in a safe way in all areas, a bike path connecting all major city
attractions should be implemented. Residents’ supported state subvention as motivation to use
bicycle. Meanwhile, there are many ways that bicycle usage can be encouraged [76]. Much cycling
research overlooks the importance of “end of trip facilities”. Support facilities such as bicycle parking
racks have supportive development to complement cycling and secure bike parking options at shops
and places of employment and recreation [77]. For cities related to tourism, it is suggested that a
shared-type smart cycling network is developed for young and unemployed entrepreneurs that will
fulfill the mobility needs of the elderly and tourists and add it as option to the existing application for
taxis. The state and local authorities should take measures for the insufficiencies found and promote
slow city policies that connect the environment to social wellbeing and the local economy [78]. In
Preveza, where the use of the bicycle is prominent when compared to other Greek cities, there are
efforts to promote cycling by constructing an extensive Sustainability 2018, 10, 268 15 of 18 network
of bicycling facilities, implementing transit integration, and organizing exhibitions and weekly races
for cyclists. Based on this study, lessons were derived about how leaders can make their cities more
safe and accessible for bicyclists and pedestrians. The analysis of the Preveza case study also leaves
room for future work in exploring best practice policy in the financing of local bicycling
improvements. The accessibility needs of particular social groups relevant to gender specific needs,
unemployed persons, vulnerable-to exclusion-citizens such as migrants, the elderly, children and the
disabled will be the object of future research. Acknowledgments: This paper was financed by the
FCT-Foundation for Science and Technology through project UID/SOC/04020/2013. The authors
would like to thank Anatoli Kontou-Bouglali for collecting the questionnaires. Author Contributions:
All authors contributed equally to this work. Paraskevi Karanikola conceived and designed the
experiments; Stilianos Tampakis and Georgios Tsantopoulos analyzed the data; and Paraskevi
Karanikola and Thomas Panagopoulos wrote the paper. Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no
conflict of interest.