Does dockless bike-share influence transit use? Evidence from the Sacramento region

Abstract

Whether micromobility is hurting or boosting transit ridership remains a matter of debate. Previous studies on this topic mainly use either individual level data or system level data. This paper provides insights into this debate through analyses of the connection between bike-share use and transit use at both the individual-level and the system-level. The analysis uses data from an intercept survey of bike-share users and system-level data on bike-share trips from the Sacramento region’s dockless electric bike-share system prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our individual-level analysis results suggest that people in the Sacramento region are more likely to replace their transit use with bike-share than to use bike-share as a first- or last-mile transit connector. Certain socio-demographic groups, however, are more likely to use bike share to connect to transit compared to others. Analysis of the system-level data shows that the number of bike-share trips that begin or end near transit stops is positively associated with transit boarding or alightings at those stops conditional on variables known to directly influence transit ridership. In this study, individual- and system-level analyses lead to different conclusions about the relationship between bike-share and transit, suggesting that reliance on system-level data alone may not provide an accurate assessment of the relationship between bike-share and transit use. A detailed understanding of the relationship using both sources of data can assist in better policy formulation that benefits both modes.