Competition, integration, or complementation? Exploring dock-based bike-sharing in New York City

Abstract:

The bike-sharing system has advanced urban transportation by enabling more flexibility for short-distance travel. However, there has been a paucity of knowledge about the relationship between the bike-sharing system and the public transit system. In this paper, we solicit a one-year biking trip data consisting of approximately 17 million trips from Citi Bike, the largest dock-based bike-sharing system in New York City. Then, we analyze the bike usage patterns by applying the K-means clustering method based on three clustering variables: the start trips, end trips, and station empty status. Lastly, we identify three relationships between bike-sharing and public transit: competition, integration, and complementation. The results show that the bike-sharing system is well integrated with the public transit system to enhance urban ridership and solve the “last mile problem.” The paper also portrays the unequal distribution landscape of the bike-sharing system, which is concentrated on transportation hubs but has relatively limited coverage in low- to medium-density residential areas. Thus, the study would help stakeholders to better understand the different roles that the bike-sharing system plays in the city. It can guide the development and expansion of the system to improve spatial equity in urban and transportation planning.

Keywords: bike-sharing, public transit, K-means clustering, mobility, mode switching

Authors: