Susan Shaheen, PhD, Adam Cohen, Nelson Chan, and Apaar Bansal
2020
Shared mobility—the shared use of a vehicle, bicycle, or other mode—is an innovative transportation strategy that enables users to gain short-term access to transportation modes on an “as-needed” basis. It includes various forms of carsharing, bikesharing, scooter sharing, ridesharing (carpooling and vanpooling), transportation network companies (TNCs), and microtransit. Included in this ecosystem are smartphone “apps” that aggregate and optimize these mobility options, as well as “courier network services” that provide last mile package and food delivery. This chapter describes...
Growing concerns over global motorization and climate change have led to increasing interest in sustainable transportation alternatives, such as bikesharing (the shared use of a bicycle fleet). Since 1965, bikesharing has grown across the globe on four continents including: Europe, North America, South America, and Asia (including Australia). Today, there are approximately 100 bikesharing programs operating in an estimated 125 cities around the world with over 139,300 bicycles. Bikesharing’s evolution is categorized into three generations: 1) White Bikes (or Free Bike Systems); 2)...
This toolkit outlines policies and practices for cities integrating shared micromobility into the built environment. The toolkit is divided into four sections that: 1) define shared micromobility and its impacts, 2) describe users of shared micromobility and market potential, 3) review best practices and case studies for curb space management and related policies, and 4) provide a summary of key findings from the toolkit.
This special issue of the International Journal of Sustainable Transportation highlights developments in shared-use vehicle research, in particular carsharing, public bikesharing, and personal vehicle sharing. Since the mid-1980s, shared-use vehicle services have gained momentum across the world. Developments include a range of operational models—private, non-profit, and governmental ventures; advanced technology; worldwide entry and growth; collaboration and competition; and increased activity by auto rental companies and automakers.
Since the mid-2000s, public bikesharing (also known as ‘‘bike hire’’) has developed and spread into a new form of mobility in cities across the globe. This paper presents an analysis of the recent increase in the number of public bikesharing systems. Bikesharing is the shared use of a bicycle fleet, which is accessible to the public and serves as a form of public transportation. The initial system designs were pioneered in Europe and, after a series of technological innovations, appear to have matured into a system experiencing widespread adoption. There are also signs that the policy of...
This article examines four phases in bicycle evolution in China from initial entry and slow growth (1900s to 1978), to rapid growth (1978 to 1995), bicycle use reduction (1995 to 2002), and policy diversification (2002 to present). Two bicycle innovations, electric bikes, and public bikesharing (the shared use of a bicycle fleet), are also explored in this article. Electric bikes could provide a transitional mode on the pathway to bicycle and public transportation integration or to small battery electric cars. Four lessons have been learned from China’s electric bike experience relevant to...
Public bikesharing—the shared use of a bicycle fleet by the public—is an innovative mobility strategy that has recently emerged in major North American cities. Bikesharing systems typically position bicycles throughout an urban environment, among a network of docking stations, for immediate access. Approximately five years ago, information technology (or IT)-based bikesharing services began to emerge in North America. Between 2007 and March 2013, 28 IT-based programs have been deployed–24 are operational, two are temporarily suspended, and two are now defunct in the United States (U.S.)...
Public bikesharing—the shared use of a bicycle fleet by the public—is an innovative mobility strategy that has recently emerged in major North American cities. Bikesharing systems typically position bicycles throughout an urban environment, among a network of docking stations, for immediate access. This paper discusses the modal shift that results from individuals participating in four public bikesharing systems in North America. The authors conducted an online survey (n =10,661 total sample), between November 2011 and January 2012, with members of four major bikesharing organizations (...
Public bikesharing—the shared use of a bicycle fleet—has recently emerged in major North American cities. Bikesharing has been found to decrease driving and increase bicycling. But shifts in public transit have been mixed. The authors evaluate survey data from two U.S. cities to explore who is shifting toward and away from public transit as a result of bikesharing. The authors explore this question by mapping geocoded home and work locations of respondents within Washington DC and Minneapolis. Respondents were mapped by their modal shift toward or away from bus and rail transit. The...
Susan A. Shaheen, Caroline J. Rodier, and Amanda M. Eaken
2003
To evaluate the potential for low-speed modes to improve transit access, the EasyConnect field test will offer shared-use Segway Human Transporters(HT), electric bicycles, and bicycles linked to a Bay Area Rapid Transit District station surrounding employment centers in California. Because of safety concerns, research was conducted to understand the risks associated with these modes and potential risk factors. A review of the safety literature indicates that user error is the major cause of low-speed mode crashes, and significant risk factors are poor surface conditions and...