Access Benefits of Shared Autonomous Vehicle Fleets: Focus on Vulnerable Populations

Abstract

This research monetizes the access benefits of making shared autonomous vehicles (SAVs) available to residents of Texas’ Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex in the U.S. Residents’ willingness to pay for SAV access under different fares and modes was estimated and compared across the region’s 5,386 traffic zones, with emphasis on those housing the regions’ most vulnerable or access-limited travelers. Assuming a $0.50/mi SAV fare, the average per-person-trip benefit is estimated to be $0.64 per trip. With $0.50/mi SAV fare, HV mode share will be reduced from 92.4% to 40.3%, while SAV will take 55.8% of the share. However, if HVs are then disallowed (removed from everyone s mode choice set) after $0.50/mile SAVs have been added, the average net impact is estimated to be −$0.31 per trip, across the metroplex. If HVs were to be replaced by access to SAVs, the impacts are positive, with region-wide average access benefits ranging from $0.16 to $0.33 per trip, depending on the SAV fare, and urban zones have a greater access benefit than rural zones with low SAV fare. Vulnerable populations and their neighborhoods were identified based on the share of persons living below the poverty level, income per capita, share of persons aged 65 years or older, those with disabilities, those owning no vehicle, and share of persons from a racial minority group. Results suggest that the access benefits of SAVs will be higher in locations/neighborhoods housing more vulnerable populations, but some vulnerabilities (e.g., those over age 65) results in lower levels of access improvement. Across those zones with highest shares of vulnerable persons, the range of differences in welfare impacts, from adding SAVs to travelers mode choice sets, widened as fares rose. As is true with many innovations, careful attention to disadvantaged groups and thoughtful policy (via smart contracting and SAV-user subsidies by public agencies, for example) can better ensure valuable access improvements for those with limited mobility and resources.