Operation Characteristics of a Free-Floating Bike Sharing System as a Feeder Mode to Rail Transit Based on GPS Data

Abstract

The jobs-housing imbalance and long commuting distances for residents in many megacities in China are promoting the increase in mode share with rail transit. The emergence of free-floating bike sharing (FFBS) provides an attractive and cost-effective multi-modal solution to the first/last mile problem. This study identifies the mobility patterns of free-floating bikes as a feeder mode to 277 rail transit stations in Beijing using detailed GPS data, and the relationships between these patterns, culture and spatial layout of the city are examined. The results show that the distribution of free-floating bikes, as a feeder mode to rail transit, exhibits an aggregating feature in the spatial-temporal pattern on weekdays. According to the results of the Clusters method and ANOVA analysis, the operation characteristics of free-floating bikes are related to the location of the transit station and the job-to-housing ratio around that area, and imbalanced usage of shared bikes across the city may result from the extreme values of job-to-housing ratios. Based on the fitted distance decay curve, accessing distance is greatly influenced by urban morphology and location. Based on these findings, recommendations for planning, management, and rebalancing of the FFBS system as a feeder mode to rail transit are proposed to promote the integration of FFBS and the rail transit system.