Comparative Analysis of User Behavior of Dock-Based vs. Dockless Bikeshare and Scootershare in Washington, D.C

Abstract

In 2017, dockless bikeshare systems were introduced in the United States, followed by dockless scootershare in early 2018. These new mobility options are expected to complement the existing station-based bikeshare systems, which are bound to static origin and destination points at docking stations. The three systems attract different users with different travel behavior mobility patterns. The present research provides a comparative analysis of users' behavior for these three shared mobility systems during March-May 2018 in the District of Columbia. Our study identifies similarities/differences between the two systems aiming for better planning, operating, and decision-making of these emerging personal shared mobility systems in the future. It uses logistic regression and random forest modeling to delineate between "member" behavior, which aligns most closely with commuter behavior, and "casual" behavior that represents more recreational behavior. The results show that 63.8% of dockless bike users and 69.6% of dockless scooter users demonstrated "member" behavior, which is slightly lower than the actual percentage of trips made by members within the conventional bikeshare system (73.3%). Dockless systems users also showed to have short trip durations similar to conventional bikeshare system's registered members, with no significant difference between trips during weekdays and weekends. Overall, this study provides a methodology to understand users' behavior for the dockless bikeshare system and provides sufficient evidence that these new shared mobility systems can potentially make positive contributions to urban multi-modal infrastructure by promoting bicycle usage for urban daily travel.

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