Location Suitable for the Implementation of Carsharing in the City of São Paulo

Abstract

This study aimed to analyze the relationship between carsharing and urban mobility in the context of smart cities. These themes converge with the current trend of the city and the introduction of new technologies to make life easier for citizens. The smart cities offer strategic principles aligning to the three main dimensions integration of infrastructures and technology-mediated services, social learning for strengthening human infrastructure, and governance for institutional improvement and citizen engagement. A growing number of cities are implementing carsharing programs to increase this transportation model, and São Paulo (Brazil) is one of these cities around de world. That model provides the general public with affordable access to public car, and can promote the integration of public transport systems and carsharing programs to improve mobility, traffic and environment related problems. One of the key factors for the success of such programs is the location of car stations in relation to potential transport demand. This study proposes a GIS-based method to calculate the spatial distribution of the potential demand for trips, locate stations using location-allocation models, and determine the best location to settle car-sharing stations. The results obtained shows which are the best places for the implementation of carsharing and its possible partnerships with several types of commercial establishments in the city of São Paulo.