Can emerging mobility solutions complement public transport and lead to a sustainable future?: A case study on Regensburg, Germany

Abstract

Different mobility solutions are emerging to cope up with the expansion of cities. This paper describes the methodology and the results of a case study on Regensburg (a historical city in Germany), focusing on the evaluation of dedicated bus lanes and shared mobility services. The methodological framework has been designed by adapting a four-step transport model and its extension based on an intermediate modelling approach. Results show that the dedicated bus lanes lead to a mode shift of around 1.6% from car modes to Public Transport (PT) and an emission reduction of 3.25% to 6.65%. The results related to shared mobility services convey that they have the potential to reduce private car-ownership. However, the mode shift pattern between bike-sharing and PT is of concern. To enable complementary effects, rather than a substitution pattern, there is a need for proper integration between the two. Furthermore, higher increases in the bike-sharing fleet size lead to larger reductions in car ownership among households with multiple cars, while the car-sharing service result in greater reductions among single-car households. Therefore, bike-sharing and car-sharing services should be designed to target different demand segments. Integrating these services within a MaaS platform would better serve a diverse set of individuals. To conclude, the modelling concepts and the results can support other cities, especially small- and medium-sized ones, to shape their mobility plans.