Study finds that bike sharing may increase rail transit usage by 15 percent, but decrease bus usage.

A study of bike sharing systems in Washington, D.C. and Minneapolis finds that bike share systems may increase public transit use under certain conditions.

Date Posted
06/24/2020
Identifier
2020-B01468
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Evaluating Public Transit Modal Shift Dynamics In Response to Bikesharing: A Tale of Two U.S. Cities

Summary Information

Bike sharing systems, enabled by a variety of ITS technologies including asset management systems, GPS, and electronic payment systems, have exploded in popularity in recent years. In theory, bike shares can connect people to transit stations or stops that would otherwise be out of comfortable walking range thereby increasing transit trips and reducing automobile trips.

METHODOLOGY

A research team from the University of California, Berkeley surveyed bike share users in Washington D.C. and Minneapolis, Minnesota to better understand how bike share systems affect travel patterns. Specifically, the research team asked respondents how bike sharing has changed their use of:

  • Bus travel
  • Rail travel
  • Walking
  • Bicycling
  • Driving
  • Taxi use
  • Car sharing.

FINDINGS

Overall, bike sharing may potentially increase transit use, but exact increases depend on the specific conditions of an area.

  • In Minneapolis, 16 percent of respondents reported decreasing bus usage, but 14.7 percent reported increased rail use.
  • In Washington D.C., rail use decreased in the urban core, but increased in the outer suburbs. Bus use decreased in all locations.

Results suggest that bike sharing likely substitutes for transit over short distances, but supplements transit when transit trips are inherently longer in nature.

Goal Areas
Deployment Locations