Publication Detail

Estimating Vehicle-Miles Traveled Reduced From Dock-Less E-bike-Share: Evidence From Sacramento, California

UCD-ITS-RP-23-15

Journal Article

BicyclingPlus Research Collaborative

Suggested Citation:
Fukushige, Tatsuya, Dillon T. Fitch-Polse, Susan L. Handy (2023) Estimating Vehicle-Miles Traveled Reduced From Dock-Less E-bike-Share: Evidence From Sacramento, California. Transportation Research Part D 117

The introduction of dock-less e-bike-share service can reduce vehicle miles traveled (VMT) and related greenhouse emissions if it substitutes for car travel. We develop a framework for estimating vehicle miles reduced from the introduction of bike-share service. We apply this framework for the Sacramento, CA region using system-level data on dock-less e-bike-share trips and individual-level data collected through a user survey. Our findings show that the daily car substitution rate, including both “private car” and “ride-haling,” was 28% on weekdays. This dock-less bike-share service was responsible for an estimated VMT reduction of 2,131 vehicle miles per day in total and 0.79 miles per bike-share trip on average across the service region on weekdays. The results of this analysis are important in assessing the value of the system. The methodologies developed in this study can be applied in other regions to assess the impact of their bike-share systems.

Key words: Vehicle miles traveled, Dock-less e-bike-share, Mode substitution, Environmental impact, Operational miles