Better Understanding the Characteristics and Influential Factors of Different Travel Patterns in Free-Floating Bike Sharing: Evidence from Nanjing, China

Mingyang Du,Lin Cheng

doi:10.3390/su10041244

Abstract

In recent years, free-floating bike sharing (FFBS) has become a significant travel mode to satisfy urban residents’ travel demands in China. This paper was designed to better understand the characteristics and influential factors of different travel patterns in FFBS. Firstly, travel patterns were divided into three categories: Origin to Destination Pattern (ODP), Travel Cycle Pattern (TCP) and Transfer Pattern (TP). Then, the characteristics of these patterns were analyzed based on a survey of 4939 valid questionnaires in Nanjing, China. A multinomial logit (MNL) model was established to explore the influential factors associated with the three patterns. The results showed the following. (1) Employees and students were more inclined to choose TP and ODP, and the selection probability of employees was larger than that of students. (2) The evening peak was more significant than the morning peak. (3) Residents with short travel distances were more likely to choose TCP and ODP, and when the travel distance reached 4 km, there was a significant transfer to TP. (4) Price had an impact on residents’ travel patterns, with residents showing an inclination toward FFBS when making short distance trips, if they were quickly found. Malfunctioning bicycles were an important factor restricting FFBS development. Several policy recommendations are proposed based on these results, for government and FFBS businesses to improve their management of FFBS systems.

Highlights

In recent years, urban public transport policy has increased its attention toward convenience, sustainability and energy savings [1]
The survey was designed to explore the travel characteristics and influential factors associated with different free-floating bike sharing (FFBS) travel patterns
When the travel time was more than 10 min, the utility of riding duration for Travel Cycle Pattern (TCP) was negative, while it was positive for Transfer Pattern (TP), which implies that users showed a preference toward Origin to Destination Pattern (ODP) and TP when riding time was within 10–20 min

Summary

Introduction

Urban public transport policy has increased its attention toward convenience, sustainability and energy savings [1]. FFBS is a new mode of bicycle operation, offering rapid and flexible mobility for one-way, round, or short trips. It serves as a feeder for other modes of public transport, improving the accessibility and connectivity and reducing the travel time [2,3]. It has other advantages, for example, FFBS bicycles can be found and parked at any available place as they have inbuilt global positioning system (GPS) devices to prevent theft. In the face of this newly developed travel mode, corresponding policies have not yet been formulated by government and businesses

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Results

Discussion

Conclusion